Skip to main content

Full text of "The life of George Mason, 1725-1792"

See other formats 


Google 


This  is  a  digital  copy  of  a  book  that  was  preserved  for  generations  on  library  shelves  before  it  was  carefully  scanned  by  Google  as  part  of  a  project 

to  make  the  world's  books  discoverable  online. 

It  has  survived  long  enough  for  the  copyright  to  expire  and  the  book  to  enter  the  public  domain.  A  public  domain  book  is  one  that  was  never  subject 

to  copyright  or  whose  legal  copyright  term  has  expired.  Whether  a  book  is  in  the  public  domain  may  vary  country  to  country.  Public  domain  books 

are  our  gateways  to  the  past,  representing  a  wealth  of  history,  culture  and  knowledge  that's  often  difficult  to  discover. 

Marks,  notations  and  other  maiginalia  present  in  the  original  volume  will  appear  in  this  file  -  a  reminder  of  this  book's  long  journey  from  the 

publisher  to  a  library  and  finally  to  you. 

Usage  guidelines 

Google  is  proud  to  partner  with  libraries  to  digitize  public  domain  materials  and  make  them  widely  accessible.  Public  domain  books  belong  to  the 
public  and  we  are  merely  their  custodians.  Nevertheless,  this  work  is  expensive,  so  in  order  to  keep  providing  tliis  resource,  we  liave  taken  steps  to 
prevent  abuse  by  commercial  parties,  including  placing  technical  restrictions  on  automated  querying. 
We  also  ask  that  you: 

+  Make  non-commercial  use  of  the  files  We  designed  Google  Book  Search  for  use  by  individuals,  and  we  request  that  you  use  these  files  for 
personal,  non-commercial  purposes. 

+  Refrain  fivm  automated  querying  Do  not  send  automated  queries  of  any  sort  to  Google's  system:  If  you  are  conducting  research  on  machine 
translation,  optical  character  recognition  or  other  areas  where  access  to  a  large  amount  of  text  is  helpful,  please  contact  us.  We  encourage  the 
use  of  public  domain  materials  for  these  purposes  and  may  be  able  to  help. 

+  Maintain  attributionTht  GoogXt  "watermark"  you  see  on  each  file  is  essential  for  in  forming  people  about  this  project  and  helping  them  find 
additional  materials  through  Google  Book  Search.  Please  do  not  remove  it. 

+  Keep  it  legal  Whatever  your  use,  remember  that  you  are  responsible  for  ensuring  that  what  you  are  doing  is  legal.  Do  not  assume  that  just 
because  we  believe  a  book  is  in  the  public  domain  for  users  in  the  United  States,  that  the  work  is  also  in  the  public  domain  for  users  in  other 
countries.  Whether  a  book  is  still  in  copyright  varies  from  country  to  country,  and  we  can't  offer  guidance  on  whether  any  specific  use  of 
any  specific  book  is  allowed.  Please  do  not  assume  that  a  book's  appearance  in  Google  Book  Search  means  it  can  be  used  in  any  manner 
anywhere  in  the  world.  Copyright  infringement  liabili^  can  be  quite  severe. 

About  Google  Book  Search 

Google's  mission  is  to  organize  the  world's  information  and  to  make  it  universally  accessible  and  useful.   Google  Book  Search  helps  readers 
discover  the  world's  books  while  helping  authors  and  publishers  reach  new  audiences.  You  can  search  through  the  full  text  of  this  book  on  the  web 

at|http: //books  .google  .com/I 


f 


HARVARD 
COLLEGE 
LIBRARY 


^  THE 


LIFE  OF  GEORGE  MASON 


1 72 5- 1 792 


BY 

KATE  MASON  ROWLAND 


INCLUDING  HIS  SPEECHES,  PUBLIC  PAPERS,  AND  CORRE- 
SPONDENCE; WITH  AN  INTRODUCTION  BY 
GENERAL  FITZHUGH  LEE 


VOLUME  II 


Thus  thow  once  more  George  Mason't  iron  face 
(That  friend  to  liberty  ;  to  license,  foe), 
A  man  who  iAen  our  coming  fate  did  trace ; 
Saw  States  diminish,  central  power  grow — 
But,  happy,  died  before  the  crowning  woe. 

F.  E.  A. 


^  TJ.  p.  PUTNAM'S  SONS 

NEW  YORK  LONDON 

•7  WEST  TWBMTY-THIRD  ITIIBBT  94  BBDPOKD  mBBT,  STRAND 

C^e  linicknbocktx  ftnn 
189a 


.)    /r  t5-   .  /     t) 


W  95SJ^^ 


Lis  (i7?S.Q.S5 


IJP'    A'i;> 


O'VAJv^Jtr  ^\iuuic(^ 


COPYRIGHT,    189a    , 

KATE  MASON  ROWLAND 


Bl«ctraC]rp«l,  Prtatad,  Mid  Dowid  bf  A     ^ 

TTbe  luiiclerbochcr  pum,  lUw  Vorfc    ^       ^  v* 

O.  P.  Putnam's  Som  ^      ^k'        * 

•?!     C\     •/ 

"0 


CONTENTS  OF  VOL.  II. 


I. — In  Private  Life.  1780-1783, 
II. — The  Year  ok  the  Peace.  1783.  . 
III. — Virginia's  Compact  with  Maryland.  1784-1787. 
IV.^Ih  the  Federal  Convention.  Mav-July,  1787. 
V. — The  Champion  of  States- Rights.  July-Septem- 
ber, 1787 

VI. — Last  Year  IN  THE  Virginia  Assembly.  1787-1788. 
.,  ^Vll. — In  the  Virginia  Convention.     1788.   . 
VIII. — An  Antifederalist  Leader.     1788.     . 
IX. — The  Philosopher  and  Seer.     1788-1790. 

X. — Conclusion.    1791-1792 

Appendix.  


25S 
298 


379 

I. letters  relating  to   the  compact  with  MARY- 
LAND, 1785. 
11. — OBJECTIONS    TO     THE    CONSTITUTION,    AND     OTHER 
PAPERS,  1787. 

IIL SPEECHES  IN   THE  CONVENTION   OF    I788. 

IV. — AMENDMENTS  TO   THE  CONSTITUTION,  1788. 
Y. — PAPER  ON   CONGRESSIONAL  DISTRICTS,  I79I. 
VI. — WILL  OF  GEORGE  MASON  Of"gUNSTON,"  1773-1792. 
LAND   DESCUBBD   IN    GEOKGE  MASON's   WILL,  AND     NOW  OWNED 
BY  HIS  DESCENDANTS. 

?  CENBRAL 
[,  1778. 


AKKS  OF  MASON,  FOWKE, 


R  THOMPSON 


iii 


LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF 
GEORGE    MASON,    OF   VIRGINIA. 

CHAPTER  I. 

IN    PRIVATE   LIFE. 
I 780- I 782. 

George  Mason  did  not  attend  the  fall  session  of  the  As- 
sembly in  1780,  as  had  been  his  design,  and  his  temporary 
retirement  from  public  life,  which  took  place  at  this  time, 
occurred,  therefore,  a  little  earlier  than  he  had  at  first  con- 
templated. In  the  letters  of  Joseph  Jones,  who  was  then  in 
the  Assembly,  letters  which  have  been  recently  published, 
there  are  several  allusions  to  Colonel  Mason.  Jones  wrote 
to  Madison  in  October  that  he  had  been  applied  to  both  by 
Colonel  Mason  and  Colone!  Meade  relative  to  the  consulship 
for  Spain,  which  they  desired  should  be  given  to  Mr.  Harri- 
son, George  Mason's  merchant  friend  in  Martinique.  It  is 
satisfactory  to  know  that  this  gentleman  did  get  the  ap- 
pointment, some  years  later,  after  the  adoption  of  the  new 
Constitution.  Joseph  Jones  wrote  to  Madison  the  2d  of 
December : 

"  Mr.  Mason  has  not  yet  appeared,  and  I  do  not  expect  he 
will  this  session,  as  he  has  the  remains  upon  him  of  a  severe 
attack  of  the  gout."  ' 

'  "  Leiten  of  Joseph  Jones."  p.  59.     1'teputment  of  State,  1S69. 
Vol.  II— I  I 


2        LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE   OF  GEORGE  MASON, 

-    ■ 

The  project  of  the  land  cession  had  therefore  to  be 
carried  through  the  Assembly  without  George  Mason's 
personal  assistance,  and  on  the  2d  of  January,  1781,  the  act 
for  this  purpose  was  passed.  But  as  two  of  its  eight  condi- 
tions were  not  satisfactory  to  Congress,  the  matter  was  not 
fully  settled  until  some  time  later.  Colonel  Clark  was  in 
Virginia  during  this  winter,  and  no  doubt  he  visited  his 
friend  at  "  Gunston  Hall "  before  leaving  the  State.  Arnold's 
raid  took  place  at  this  time,  and  Colonel  Clark  assisted  in 
the  defence  of  the  James  River.  In  the  spring  the  Assem- 
bly, which  met  in  March,  was  disturbed  by  the  British  and 
forced  to  adjourn  from  place  to  place.  Colonel  Mason,  in 
his  retirement  at  "  Gunston,"  was  keenly  alive  to  the  critical 
situation  of  the  country,  and  though  no  longer  in  the  coun- 
'^cils  of  his  State,  he  was  revolving  at  home  projects  for  the 
,  public  good.  And  the  fruit  of  some  of  his  reflections  appears 
in  the  following  letter  to  the  Virginia  delegates  in  Congress : 

Letter  to  the  Honorable  the  Virginia  Delegates  in  Congress  at  Phila- 
delphia^ April  i^  1 781. 

Gentlemen  : 

Permit  me  to  recommend  to  your  consideration  a  subject  which 
I  think  merits  the  attention  of  Congress.  The  enemy  is  now  pro- 
fessedly carrying  on  a  predatory  war  against  the  United  States 
contrary  to  the  custom  of  civilized  nations.  A  board  of  Refugees 
has  been  some  time  sitting  in  New  York  upon  the  subject  of 
depredation  and  consulting  upon  the  most  effectual  methods  of 
plundering  the  defenceless  part  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  Ameri- 
can States  in  which  they  are  avowedly  authorized  and  supported 
by  the  British  king  and  his  generals.  Several  private  people  have 
lately  been  robbed,  their  houses  burned  and  their  estates  ruined 
by  the  crews  of  British  ships.  Arnold  is  at  this  time  preparing 
a  great  number  of  flat-bottomed  boats  at  Portsmouth  notoriously 
for  the  purpose  of  plundering  the  tobacco  warehouses  and  the 
inhabitants  upon  the  rivers  and  creeks  in  Virginia  and  Maryland. 
How  practicable  a  plan  of  this  sort  is  I  need  hardly  mention  to 
gentlemen  acquainted  with  the  situation  of  this  country.  What 
may  be  the  fatal  consequences  not  only  of  disabling  many  thou- 


LETTER  TO  THE  VIRGINIA  DELEGATES  IN  CONGRESS.   3 

sands  from  paying  their  taxes  and  contributing  to  the  support  of 
the  common  cause,  but  of  throwing  them  also  as  a  dead  weight 
on  the  rest  of  the  community,  or  how  few  of  them  may  have 
public  virtue  enough  to  withstand  the  terrors  of  poverty  and  ruin 
are  topics  which,  however  disagreeable,  deserve  the  most  serious 
reflections  that  if  possible  the  evil  may  be  averted.  Whether  the 
king  and  his  ministry  encouraged  by  their  success  in  Carolina  ex- 
pect by  such  means  to  make  an  easier  conquest  of  the  Southern 
States,  or  whether  expecting  the  interference  of  the  great  powers 
of  Europe  to  compel  them  to  relinquish  their  claim  to  the  Ameri- 
can States,  they  are  now  acting  upon  the  principles  of  revenge 
determined  to  desolate  what  they  despair  of  recovering — be  this 
as  it  may — it  is  surely  the  duty  of  the  Great  Council  of  America 
to  endeavor  if  possible  to  prevent  the  mischief  and  save  from 
ruin  such  numbers  of  their  citizens.  Whoever  considers  the  im- 
portance of  the  trade  of  these  States  to  Great  Britain,  and  her 
expectations  of  great  part  of  it  returning  into  British  channels,  "* 
upon  a  peace,  may  readily  conceive  that  she  will  be  alarmed  at 
any  measures  which  must  affect  it  hereafter  by  imposing  such 
burdens  upon  it  as  will  give  a  lasting  preference  to  other  nations. 
If  therefore  Congress  were  to  recommend  to  the  Legislatures  of 
the  different  States  immediately  to  enact  laws,  declaring  that  all 
private  property  which  has  been  or  shall  be  plundered  or  de- 
stroyed by  the  British  troops  or  others  acting  under  the  authority 
of  the  King  of  Great  Britain,  beyond  high-water  mark^  from  a 
certain  day  shall  be  hereafter  reimbursed  and  made  good  to  the 
individual  sufferers  and  their  heirs  by  dutys  to  be  imposed  upon 
all  imports  from  Great  Britain  into  the  respective  States,  after  a 
peace  and  to  be  continued  until  full  reparation  shall  be  accord- 
ingly made,  and  for  this  purpose  directing  valuations  upon  oath 
to  be  made  of  all  private  property  so  plundered  or  destroyed,  to 
be  returned  with  the  names  and  places  of  abode  of  the  owners  to 
some  certain  public  office  in  each  State  and  there  duly  registered, 
it  is  more  than  probable  it  would  produce  good  effects.  The 
fund  is  adequate  to  the  purpose  and  the  measure  without  con- 
quest could  not  be  counteracted.  There  is  hardly  a  merchant 
or  manufacturer  in  Great  Britain  who  would  not  feel  himself  , 
affected  by  it ;  if  anything  can  restrain  them  this  probably  would. 
Their  commanders  here  would  immediately  represent  it  to  the 


4        LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

ministry  and  inquire  their  further  instructions  and  the  nation 
would  be  cautious  of  repeating  mischiefs  which  must  one  day 
reverberate  upon  themselves.  If  it  had  not  this  effect  it  at  least 
would  be  a  piece  of  justice  to  the  injured  to  whom  the  commu- 
nity owes  justice,  if  it  cannot  afford  them  protection.  The  only 
objection  that  occurs  to  me  is  the  common  maxim  ''that  all  dutys 
ultimately  fall  upon  the  consumer/'  and  consequently  that  this 
would  be  a  tax  upon  ourselves.  If  this  were  true  I  think  it  no 
good  objection,  because  it  would  only  be  reimbursing  by  a  volun- 
tary tax  one  part  of  the  community  what  they  had  suffered  from 
their  local  circumstances  more  than  the  other  without  any  fault 
of  their  own.  But  the  maxim  is  not  true  with  respect  to  dutys 
upon  the  imports  of  any  particular  country,  while  we  are  not  con- 
fined to  their  market,  but  have  an  open  trade  with  all  the  world, 
and  therefore  this  charge  would  fall  either  upon  the  aggressing 
nation,  or  upon  those  who,  disaffected  to  the  American  cause, 
were  desirous  of  giving  Great  Britain  an  impolitic  and  undue 
preference.  It  would  fall  partly  upon  both.  I  got  a  bill  passed 
a  year  or  two  ago  in  the  Virginia  House  of  Delegates  but  it  was 
rejected  in  the  Senate  for  no  other  reason  that  I  could  learn  but 
that  it  was  ruin  for  Virginia  to  make  such  a  law  unless  similar 
measures  were  adopted  by  the  other  States.  Should  these  hints 
be  approved  there  is  not  a  moment  to  be  lost,  and  such  a  measure 
should  not  be  intended  merely  in  terrorem^  but  carried  into  the 
strictest  execution. 

There  is  another  subject  which  deserves  the  public  attention. 
I  have  always  endeavored  to  make  myself  well  acquainted  with 
the  sentiments  of  the  bulk  of  the  people,  conscious  that  in  gov- 
ernments like  ours,  upon  this  in  a  great  measure  must  depend 
the  success  of  the  present  contest.  I  live  in  a  part  of  the  country 
remarkable  for  its  Whigism  and  attachment  to  the  cause  of  liberty, 
and  it  is  with  much  concern  I  find  a  general  opinion  prevailing 
that  our  allies  are  spinning  out  the  war  in  order  to  weaken 
America  as  well  as  Great  Britain  and  thereby  leave  us  at  the  end 
of  it  as  dependent  as  possible  on  themselves.  However  unjust 
this  opinion  may  be,  it  is  natural  enough  to  planters  and  farmers 
burdened  with  heavy  taxes  and  frequently  dragged  from  their 
families  by  military  duty  in  the  continual  alarms  occasioned  by 
the  superiority  of   the  British  navy.     They  see  their  property 


A  FRENCH  FLEET  REQUIRED,  5 

daily  exposed  to  destruction  ;  they  see  with  what  facility  the 
British  troops  are  removed  from  one  part  of  the  continent  to 
another,  and  with  what  infinite  charge  and  fatigue  ours  are  too 
late  obliged  to  follow.  If  our  allies  had  a  superior  fleet  here  I 
should  have  very  little  doubt  of  a  favorable  issue  to  the  war, 
but  without  it  I  fear  we  are  deceiving  both  them  and  ourselves 
in  expecting  we  shall  be  able  to  keep  our  people  much  longer 
firm  in  so  unequal  an  opposition  to  Great  Britain.  Would  it  not 
be  wise  and  honest  to  lay  this  matter  candidly  before  them,  and 
with  decent  firmness  explain  how  much  pur  mutual  interest 
requires  a  fleet  upon  the  American  coast  superior  to  that  of  our 
common  enemy. 

I  have  mentioned  to  you  my  thoughts  upon  these  very  interest- 
ing subjects,  trusting  that  the  motives  upon  which  I  act  (the 
good  of  our  country)  will  induce  you  to  pardon  such  a  liberty  in 
a  private  gentleman  and  render  any  further  apology  unnecessary. 
Ill  health  hindering  my  attendance  at  Richmond  upon  the  last 
session  of  the  Assembly  prevents  my  knowing  which  of  the 
Virginia  delegates  are  now  in  Congress,  otherwise  I  should  only 
have  wrote  to  one  or  two  of  the  members,  instead  of  addressing 
myself  to  the  delegates  in  a  letter  which  from  the  superscription 
may  appear  to  have  the  air  of  an  official  one. 

I  have  the  honor  to  be  with  the  greatest  respect,  gentlemen, 

Your  most  obedient  servant, 

G.  Mason. 

April  20. — P.  S.  Since  the  above  letter  was  wrote,  several  of 
the  enemy's  ships  have  been  within  two  or  three  miles  of  Alexan- 
dria ;  they  have  burned  and  plundered  several  houses  and  carried 
off  a  great  many  slaves  ;  though  I  have  hitherto  been  fortunate 
enough  to  lose  no  part  of  my  property.' 

The  members  of  the  Ohio  Company  proposed  at  this  time 
to  make  another  effort  with  the  Virginia  Assembly  to  secure 
their  lands.  Robert  Carter  of  "  Nomini  *'  wrote  to  a  friend, 
on  this  subject,  April  14th  : 

''  It  is  said  that  the  House  of  Delegates  rejected  the  Company's 
claim  because  their  works  of  survey  were  returned  by  a  surveyor 

*  Madison  MSS.,  State  Department 


6        LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

[Hancock  Lee]  not  legally  appointed.  Nevertheless  that  session 
established  some  officers'  claims  whose  works  of  survey  were 
returned  by  surveyors  acting  under  no  better  authority  than  the 
surveyor  appointed  by  the  Ohio  Company.  It  is  expected  that 
these  cases  will  be  relied  on  as  precedents  and  the  claims  of  the 
Ohio  Company  will  be  revived.  This  matter  is  of  a  joint  concern, 
therefore  the  parties  must  join  in  presenting  a  petition  which  I 
apprehend  should  be  done  this  approaching  session,  and  I  purpose 
to  make  some  movement  therein." 

He  accordingly  wrote  to  Colonel  Mason  on  the  nth  of 
May,  suggesting  such  action,  and  he  adds.  'Mf  this  idea 
should  be  approved  on  and  a  petition  shall  be  prepared  and 
presented,  pray  have  my  name  inserted  therein  for  two 
fortieth  parts,  I  having  purchased  two  shares  of  the  late  Mr. 
Augustine  Washington  and  Mr.  Gawin  Corbin,  members  of 
the  Ohio  Company."  * 

The  American  troops,  under  Lafayette,  Steuben,  and 
Wayne,  were  in  Virginia,  in  the  spring  of  1781,  for  the 
purpose  of  repelling  the  invasion  of  the  enemy  ;  and  an  act 
of  the  Assembly,  authorizing  the  seizure  of  cattle  for  the  use 
of  the  army,  to  supply  them  with  provisions,  was  put  in 
operation,  causing  some  dissatisfaction.  George  Mason 
thought  that  the  commissioners  were  carrying  out  this  law 
in  a  manner  that  would  inflict  needless  injury  on  the  people 
and  alienate  them  from  the  cause  of  patriotism,  and  he 
wrote  to  Jefferson,  then  governor  of  the  State,  calling  his 
attention  to  the  matter. 

Fairfax  County,  Gunston  Hall, 
May  14th,  1 78 1. 

Sir, 

The  order  for  seizing  live  cattle  for  the  supply  of  the  army 
is  like  to  produce  much  confusion  and  oppression  in  this  part  of 
the  country  from  the  vague,  and  (as  I  apprehend)  illegal  instnic- 
tions  of  Mr.  Brown  to  his  deputies,  who  are  acting  very  differently 
in  the  different  counties,  according  to  each  man's  interpretation 
of  instructions  which  no  man  understands.     This,  if  not  timely 

*  Carter  Letter-Bookt. 


LETTER    TO  JEFFERSON. 


prevented  by  clear  and  precise  orders  from  the  executive,  will  in 
many  instances  occasion  lawsuits,  and  in  some,  most  probably, 
violence.  The  instructions  I  have  seen  from  Mr.  Brown  direct 
his  deputies  to  take  a  tenth  part  of  every  maris  stock.  The  true 
construction  of  this  I  take  to  be  a  tenth  part  of  every  man's 
stock,  in  quantity  and  quality.  But  it  would  be  a  wanton  waste  of 
cattle.  In  some  counties  they  estimate  the  value  of  a  man's 
whole  stock,  and  take  the  tenth  part  of  that  value^  in  beef  cattle. 
In  other  counties  (particularly  in  this)  the  deputy  commissary 
thinks  himself  authorized  to  take  in  beef  cattle  the  tenth  part  of 
the  number  of  each  man's  stock,  which  would  generally  be  near 
half  of  the  vctlue  of  the  whole.  And  as,  upon  the  common 
average  of  stocks,  there  is  not  a  tenth  part  of  them  beef  cattle, 
if  the  measure  was  to  be  executed  throughout  the  State  in  this 
manner,  every  family  would  be  left  without  beef,  tallow,  or  leather 
for  the  ensuing  year  ;  the  quantity  of  cattle  immediately  taken 
would  be  enormous,  not  less,  upon  a  moderate  computation,  I 
conceive  than  forty  or  fifty  thousand  beeves,  and  there  would 
not  be  a  beef  left  to  supply  the  army  another  campaign.  The  only 
laws  I  know  of  upon  which  this  power  of  seizure  is  founded  are  the 
two  acts  passed  in  the  last  May  session,  one  ''  for  procuring  a  sup- 
ply of  provisions  and  other  necessaries  for  the  army,"  empowering 
the  governor  and  council  to  appoint  commissioners  for  seizing 
certain  enumerated  articles  at  fixed  prices,  and  the  other  "  an  act 
for  giving  further  powers  to  the  Governor  and  Council,"  extending 
the  powers  given  by  the  former  act  to  the  obtaining  so  many  live 
cattle  as  may  be  wanted  for  supplying  the  militia  or  other  troops, 
to  be  valued  and  appraised  by  two  disinterested  persons  upon 
oath  &c  ;  provided  always  that  not  more  than  one  half  oi  the  bul- 
locks and  barren  cows  belonging  to  any  person,  fit  for  slaughter, 
shall  be  subject  to  such  seizure.  These  two  acts  are  continued 
by  a  subsequent  session,  with  only  an  augmentation  of  the  prices 
enumerated  in  the  first  act,  occasioned  by  the  depreciation  of 
money  in  the  meantime.  But  I  think  nothing  is  therein  said 
about  the  price  of  live  cattle,  it  being  unnecessary  as  the  price 
had  not  been  ascertained  by  the  former  acts,  and  the  cattle  were 
to  be  appraised  at  the  time  of  seizure.  The  words  fit  for  slaughter 
can  hardly  be  literally  conformed  to  at  this  season  of  the  year, 
and  may  reasonably  be  extended  to  such  cattle  as  are  fit  to  fatten 


8        LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON 

for  slaughter.  But  certainly  the  power  is  limited  to  the  half  of 
such  cattle  belonging  to  any  such  person,  and  any  commissary 
presuming  to  exceed  it  will  act  contrary  to  law,  and  distress  the 
people  unnecessarily,  as  the  one  half  of  such  cattle  will  afford 
more  than  an  ample  supply.  There  are  also  doubts  with  respect 
to  draught  oxen,  which  I  am  sure  it  was  not  the  intention  of  the 
legislature  to  seize  for  beef,  nor  do  they  come  within  the  descrip- 
tion of  the  law.  The  people  might  as  well  have  their  waggon  or 
plough  horses  taken  from  them  as  their  draught  oxen. 

Another  subject  of  dispute  is  the  price  of  cattle.  By  a  vote  of 
both  houses  in  November  last  the  executive  is  empowered  to 
pursue  such  measures  as  to  them  appear  practicable  and  effectual 
for  the  laying  in  such  quantity  of  beef  and  salt  as  shall  be  neces- 
sary for  supplying  the  army,  allowing  for  grass  beef  34/  per 
pound  and  for  salt  £^o  per  bushel.  And  although  from  the 
whole  tenor  and  style  of  the  said  vote,  it  is  evident  that  it  relates 
only  to  the  supply  of  the  army  during  the  then  slaughter  season, 
and  not  at  all  to  the  powers,  prices  or  valuations  described  in  the 
before  mentioned  acts,  yet  some  of  the  deputy  commissaries 
apply  it  to  the  present  seizure  of  live  cattle,  and  instead  of 
appraisement,  the  weight  is  judged  by  two  men  upon  oath,  and 
certificates  given  at  24  /  per  pound,  for  which  they  say  they  have 
late  instructions.  In  some  counties  the  judges  fix  this  at  what 
they  think  the  nett  weight  of  the  cattle  in  their  present  poor  con- 
dition ;  in  other  counties  at  what  they  think  would  be  the  nett 
weight  if  the  cattle  were  fat  and  fit  for  slaughter,  or  what  they 
would  weigh  in  the  slaughter  season  next  fall,  as  in  the  mean  time 
they  would  not  cost  their  owners  a  penny.  A  grass  bullock  which 
would  have  weighed  400  last  November,  will  not  at  this  time 
weigh  200  pounds,  so  that  in  some  counties  the  people  will  get 
less  that  half  what  their  neighbors  receive,  or  of  the  real  value  of 
their  cattle,  besides  the  loss  by  depreciation  since  last  November. 
The  commissary  in  this  and  some  other  counties  is,  by  these  dif- 
ficulties, prevented  from  proceeding,  whereupon  I  promised  to 
lay  the  matter  before  your  Excellency  and  the  council,  and  to 
communicate  to  them  the  result.  Sensible  of  the  important 
objects  in  which  the  time  of  the  executive  is  now  taken  up,  I 
should  not  have  troubled  them  with  this,  if  I  did  not  foresee  that 
the  purposes  of  the  law  will  be  in  a  great  measure  defeated,  and 


RAIDS  OF  THE  ENEMY, 


great  confusion  ensue,  unless  prevented  by  speedy  and  precise 
instructions  to  the  deputy-commissaries  so  as  to  put  their  busi- 
ness upon  a  just  and  equal  footing. 

The  people  in  this  part  of  Virginia  are  well  disposed  to  do 
everything  in  their  power  to  support  the  war,  but  the  same  prin- 
ciples which  attach  them  to  the  American  cause  will  incline  them 
to  resist  injustice  or  oppression.  I  would  further  beg  leave  to 
suggest  that  it  might  be  better  to  take  now  only  such  a  number 
of  cattle  as  are  wanted  for  immediate  use,  and  suffer  the  others 
to  remain  longer  on  their  own  pastures,  where  at  this  season  of 
the  year  they  will  thrive  faster,  upon  grass  alone,  than  fed  with 
corn,  collected  in  numbers  in  strange  pastures,  and  a  great  ex- 
pense be  saved  to  the  public.  It  will  be  necessary  also  to  order 
that  the  cattle  be  collected  in  places  out  of  the  reach  of  the  enemy, 
when  the  situation  of  the  county  will  admit  it.  I  am  led  to 
mention  this  last  circumstance  from  my  knowing  that  the  place 
pitched  upon  in  this  county  is  so  near  the  river  that  a  party  from 
a  single  vessel  might  carry  off  the  cattle  in  two  or  three  hours, 
although  a  considerable  part  of  the  county  is  out  of  the  reach  of 
the  enemy,  except  in  great  force. 

I  beg  the  favor  of  an  answer  by  the  first  post,  or  other  safe 
conveyance,  and  remain  with  the  greatest  respect,  Sir,  your  most 
obedient  humble  servant, 

G.  Mason. 

His  Excellency,  Thomas  Jefferson,  Esq. : 
Governor  of  Virginia.' 

The  raids  of  the  enemy  along  all  the  navigable  waters  of 
Virginia  were  constant  at  this  period,  and  the  residents  on 
the  Potomac,  among  the  rest  of  this  exposed  class  of  the 
population,  were  in  a  continual  state  of  alarm.  Col.  Henry 
Lee,  father  of  Henry  Lee,  the  young  lieutenant-colonel  of 
cavalry,  was  the  county  lieutenant  of  Prince  William,  and  in 
a  letter  to  Governor  Jefferson  of  the  9th  of  April,  he  tells  of 
a  small  schooner  which  a  few  days  before  had  gone  up  to 
Alexandria,  the  raiders  stealing  negroes  and  burning  houses 

'  MS.  Letter  published  in  Amtrican  Historical  Record,  p.  231.  Edited  by 
B.  J.  Lossing. 


lO     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

on  their  way,  and  he  adds:  ''If  the  enemy  had  succeeded 
at  Alexandria  they  intended,  one  of  the  prisoners  says,  to 
have  burnt  General  Washington's  houses,  plundered  Colonel 
Mason  and  myself,  and  endeavored  to  have  made  me  a 
prisoner."  * 

On  the  I2th,  Alexandria  was  in  much  confusion  at  the 
approach  of  the  enemy's  fleet.  Six  armed  vessels  went  up 
the  river,  and  the  counties  of  Stafford,  Prince  William,  and 
Fairfax  were  the  "  scene  of  war." "  Colonel  Fitzgerald,  how- 
ever, made  such  a  bold  show  that  the  British  did  not  land, 
and  so  "  Gunston  "  was  not  molested.  Under  the  appre- 
hension of  the  enemy's  approach,  George  Mason  prepared 
to  move  into  Maryland,  farther  from  the  river,  and  he  sent 
his  valuables,  with  the  following  letter,  to  his  friend,  Pearson 
Chapman,  of  Charles  County. 

Gunston  Hall,  Thursday  Afternoon, 
May  31st,  1781. 

Dear  Sir  : — The  rapid  march  of  the  enemy  obliges  me  to  send  as 
many  of  my  effects,  as  I  can  readily  remove,  to  Maryland,  and  I 
expect  to  follow  immediately  with  Mrs.  Mason  and  my  daughters. 
I  must  therefore  beg  the  favour  of  you  to  permit  all  the  things  I 
send  to  be  put  into  your  dwelling  house,  for  safety,  until  I  can 
carry  them  up  to  my  son  William's  house  at  the  head  of  Matta- 
woman,  which  I  shall  do  with  all  possible  expedition.  I  expect 
Mrs.  Mason  and  the  girls  will  be  over  early  to-morrow. 

Part  of  the  Virginia  Light  Horse  crossed  at  Fredericks[burg  ?]  on 
Tuesday  night ;  the  Marquis'  Troops  (who  are  not  strong  enough 
for  an  action)  were  expected  there  last  night,  unless  prevented 
by  the  enemy.  Lord  Comwallis  with  the  main  body  of  the  Brit- 
ish army  was  at  Hanover  Court  House  (scarce  fifty  miles  from 
Fredericksburg)  on  Tuesday  morning,  their  object,  no  doubt, 
to  defeat  the  Marquis'  Troops  before  General  Waine  came  up,  or 
to  prevent  the  junction  :  this  intelligence  comes  from  an  officer 
sent  express  to  General  Waine  and  may  be  relied  on.  I  think  if 
the  winds  permit  we  may  expect  their  fleet  up  this  river  in  a  very 

'  '*  Virginia  Calendar  Papers/'  vol.  ii.,  p.  21. 
•/Wr/.,  p.  39. 


LETTER    TO  PEARSON  CHAPMAN.  II 

few  days.  Our  situation  in  Virginia  is  truly  critical  and  danger- 
ous ;  a  very  few  weeks,  unless  the  enemy  can  be  checked,  will 
place  Maryland  in  the  same  predicament.  Nothing  can  speedily 
extricate  the  two  States  but  the  arrival  of  a  strong  French  fleet 
which  there  is  reason  to  expect  every  day.  I  have  given  you  the 
earliest  information  in  my  power^  that  you  may  endeavour  to 
secure  your  moveables  by  carrying  them  a  few  miles  from  the 
river,  where  I  think  they  will  be  safe  for  some  time. 

I  beg  the  favour  of  you  to  let  your  people  and  cart  assist  my 
people  in  carrying  up  the  things  from  the  landing  to  the  house, 
that  the  boat  may  return  as  quick  as  possible  ;  and  am  dear  sir 

Your  most  obedient  servant 

George  Mason. 

If  Mr.  Chapman  is  from  home,  Mrs.  Chapman  will  be  pleased 
to  open  this  letter. 

Mr.  Pearson  Chapman 

Charles  County 

Maryland ' 

The  Chapmans  lived  almost  immediately  opposite  ''  Guns- 
ton  "  on  the  Maryland  side  of  the  Potomac,  and  the  old 
Eilbeck  place,  "  Mattawoman/'  was  three  miles  farther  off 
at  the  head  of  Mattawoman  Creek.  The  mother  of  Pearson 
Chapman,  Mrs.  Constance  Chapman,  was  an  intimate  friend 
of  George  Mason's  first  wife,  and  drawing  up  her  will,  in 
1768,  she  makes  therein  the  following  bequest :  "  I  give  and 
bequeath  unto  my  friend  Mrs.  Ann  Mason  a  mourning  ring, 
the  stone  to  be  set  round  with  diamond  sparks,  the  said  ring 
to  be  the  value  of  three  guineas  and  a  half,  and  be  inscribed 
with  my  age  and  the  time  of  my  death."  Mrs.  Chapman, 
however,  survived  Mrs.  Mason  many  years,  dying  in  Fairfax 
County,  in  1798.  A  great-grandson  of  Pearson  Chapman  is 
living  now  at  the  old  place  in  Maryland,  which  is  called 
"Vuedel'Eau." 

Colonel  Mason  wrote  two  letters  early  in  June  to  his  son 
George  in  France. 

*  A  copy  from  the  original  in  possession  of  Mr.  Pemson  Chapman,  April  30, 
i860,  made  by  the  late  Mr.  Joseph  Homer,  of  Warrenton,  Va. 


12      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

Virginia,  Gunston  Hall, 
Dear  George  :  J""<*  3^-  '78i. 

A  gentleman  now  here,  on  his  way  to  the  Northern  States,  and 
from  thence  to  the  West  Indies,  affords  me  a  better  opportunity 
of  writing  to  you  than  I  have  had  for  a  long  time  past ;  and  as 
I  shall  write  duplicates,  and  direct  them  to  be  sent  by  different 
vessels,  some  of  them  will  probably  reach  you  :  they  will  be  en- 
closed in  covers  to  Messrs.  Schweighauser  and  Dobree,  Mer- 
chants in  Nantes.  I  find  from  some  of  your  letters,  that  most, 
if  not  all  of  our  letters  to  you  have  miscarried,  and  consequently 
that  you  are  unacquainted  with  everything  which  has  happened 
here  in  your  absence.  Your  grandmother,  Mrs.  Eilbeck  died  last 
December  and  has  willed  her  estate,  in  the  manner  she  always 
intended  ;  some  legacies  in  slaves  and  money  to  her  granddaugh- 
ters, a  negro  boy  to  John  and  Tom,  and  the  bulk  of  her  fortune 
to  your  brother  William.  Your  estate  here  is  at  present  in  good 
order,  and  a  promising  harvest  coming  on,  if  we  are  able  to  reap 
it.  There  was  a  pretty  good  crop  of  com  made  on  it  last  year, 
and  about  10,000  lbs.  of  pork  sold  at  a  high  nominal  price  (;;£2oo 
per  hundred)  but  before  the  money  could  be  invested  in  tobacco 
the  rapid  depreciation  reduced  it  exceedingly.  Part  has  been 
invested  in  tobacco,  some  in  the  usual  way  of  Inspector's  notes  ; 
the  remainder  I  have  advised  your  brother  Thomson  to  endeavor 
to  invest  in  tobacco  in  the  hands  of  substantial  people,  upon 
tobacco  bonds,  rather  than  having  it  in  the  public  warehouses, 
where  it  is  not  safe  a  week  from  the  enemy,  who  have  within 
these  two  months  burned  more  than  ten  thousand  hogsheads  of 
tobacco  in  Virginia,  and  still  continue  to  destroy  all  they  can  get 
at.  I  observe  what  you  say  of  our  tobacco  at  Bordeaux  being 
unsold  in  March.  I  hope  it  still  remains  so,  as  the  quantity 
destroyed  here  must  raise  the  price  in  Europe,  beyond  anything 
known  within  the  memory  of  man.  I  will  write  to  Messrs  Delaps 
upon  the  subject.  This  family  has  not  yet  lost  any  tobacco, 
slaves  or  other  property,  by  the  enemy,  although  their  ships  have 
been  as  high  as  Alexandria,  but  we  are  in  daily  expectation  of 
sharing  the  same  fate  with  our  neighbors  upon  this  and  the  other 
rivers,  where  many  families  have  been  suddenly  reduced  from 
opulence  to  indigence,  particularly  upon  James  river,  the  enemy 
taking  all  the  slaves,  horses,  cattle,  furniture  and  other  property 


LETTERS  TO  HIS  ELDEST  SON  IN  FRANCE.  1 3 

^ • 

they  can  lay  their  hands  on  ;  and  what  they  can't  carry  away  they 
wantonly  destroy.  We  have  removed  our  furniture,  backwards 
and  forwards  two  or  three  times,  upon  different  alarms,  by  which 
it  is  very  much  damaged  :  great  part  of  it  was  packed  up  last 
week  and  sent  to  Maryland,  where  your  brother  Thomson  and 
your  sisters  now  are. 

The  schooner  Isabella  was  drove  on  shore,  on  the  coast  of 
North  Carolina,  and  the  vessel  lost ;  some  part  of  the  cargo  was 
saved,  but  upon  the  average  settlement  of  the  proceeds,  our  pro- 
portion in  the  present  depreciated  money  was  hardly  worth  the 
trouble  of  receiving.  Mine  was  about  ;;^3>ooo  and  yours  ^^366, 
including  Mrs.  Eilbeck's,  Dr.  Brown's  and  the  whole  consign- 
ment to  your  brother  Thomson.  The  letters,  bills  of  lading,  and 
invoyces  all  came  safe  to  hand,  but  yours  were  so  irregular,  some 
packages  mentioned  in  the  invoyce  not  being  inserted  in  the  bills 
of  lading,  and  some  of  the  contents  not  particularized  nor  ex- 
tended in  the  invoyce,  so  that  if  the  goods  had  arrived  safe  we 
should  hardly  have  been  able  to  ascertain  them  properly,  much 
less  was  it  practicable  to  fix  the  real  value  upon  the  general 
average.  You  have  probably  been  a  loser  by  this,  though  very 
deservedly ;  if  ever  you  send  any  more  goods,  pray  be  more 
methodical  and  exact.  The  ship  General  Washington  is  fitted  out 
as  a  privateer,  and  I  believe  is  now  upon  a  cruise.  She  arrived 
from  Amsterdam  in  a  New  England  port,  where  her  cargo  pro- 
duced less  than  half  the  value  here.  I  had  better  than  ;;^2oo 
sterling  cost  of  goods  in  her  upon  my  own  private  account,  which 
still  remain  in  New  England,  from  whence  I  am  not  likely  to  get 
them  soon,  if  ever  :  by  these  disappointments  the  family  are  in 
great  want  of  necessaries.  Our  bay  and  rivers  are  entirely  in  the 
possession  of  the  enemy,  our  little  trade  totally  at  an  end,  and 
almost  all  the  Virginia  vessels  taken. 

The  family,  I  thank  God,  are  all  well,  except  myself,  who  am 
but  just  recovering  from  a  fit  of  the  gout.  No  remarkable 
changes  have  happened  among  your  acquaintance.  Pray  let  me 
know  if  my  order  on  Penet  Da  Costa  and  Company  was  duly 
paid.  Let  me  know  also  where  Mr.  William  Lee  is,  and  in  what 
circumstances,  and  way  of  life,  &c.,  and  give  me  the  best  infor- 
mation you  can  respecting  your  expences,  and  manner  of  life, 
health,  &c.    I  am  sorry  to  hear  you  make  so  slow  progress  in  the 


14     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON 

French  language  ;  it  is  owing  to  your  conversing  too  much  among 
your  own  countrymen,  and  to  your  not  accustoming  yourself  to 
write  French.  I  hope,  however,  you  will  not  be  discouraged,  but 
will  still  endeavor  to  make  yourself  master  of  it. 

I  have  not  yet  received  the  surveys  of  my  back  lands  ;  when  I 
do  (if  it  is  in  time)  I  will  transmit  you  copies  of  them,  and  par- 
ticularize the  terms  by  which  I  purpose  to  settle  them.  I  can  now 
only  mention  the  outlines.  I  will  on  no  consideration  risk  the  im- 
porting, or  maintaining  people,  at  my  charge.  But  if  settlers  can 
be  engaged  to  come  in,  at  their  own  charge,  I  will  grant  them  long 
leases,  at  very  low  rents  ;  vizt,  for  three  lives,  or  twenty-one  years, 
paying  the  first  three  years,  only  the  taxes  of  the  quantity  of  land 
leased  and  afterwards  the  annual  rent  of  about  thirty  shillings  ster- 
ling per  hundred  acres,  and  the  taxes  ;  with  covenants  to  plant 
orchards  and  make  the  usual  improvements  of  buildings  (which 
you  know  in  this  country  are  not  great)  within  four  or  five  years 
after  the  end  of  the  present  war ;  the  lessee  to  have  sub-tenants, 
if  he  pleases,  preserving  one  third  part  of  the  quantity  leased 
uncut  and  uncultivated,  to  supply  the  premises  with  wood  and 
timber.  Considering  the  conveniencies  of  game,  fish,  wild-fowl, 
and  the  navigation  (my  lands  being  below  the  Falls  of  the  Ohio) 
and  the  extreme  richness  and  fertility  of  the  soil,  the  fineness  of 
the  climate,  and  the  levelness  of  the  land,  these  terms  are  very 
reasonable,  and  I  should  think  would  induce  men  of  substance  to 
take  quantities  and  bring  in  settlers.  I  presume  this  will  find 
you  in  Paris,  or,  as  I  rather  hope,  in  the  south  of  France.  I  can- 
not but  think  you  judged  extremely  ill,  in  spending  so  much  time 
in  Nantes,  where  you  could  expect  no  great  improvement,  either 
in  health,  knowledge  or  manners.  I  think  it  will  also  be  very 
imprudent  in  you  to  return  to  America,  without  trying  the  effect 
of  one  summer,  either  in  the  south  of  France,  Italy  or  Spain,  as 
the  best  physicians  in  Paris  may  advise  you  :  the  recovery  of 
health  should  be  considered  as  your  primary  object,  for  without 
that  you  will  have  incurred  much  expence  and  loss  of  time  to 
little  purpose. 

I  would  recommend  it  to  you  to  embark  for  America  about 
next  May,  so  as  to  have  a  warm  weather  voyage,  and  be  some 
time  again  in  your  native  climate,  before  the  return  of  winter,  and 
to  endeavor  to  get  your  passage  in  a  ship  of  war.  If  any  are 
coming  to  America  about  the  time,  and  you  make  proper  use  of 


CORNWALUS  IN   VIRGINIA.  1$ 

your  letters  and  credentials,  I  should  think  you  might  by  means 
of  Doctor  Franklin,  Colonel  Lawrence,  or  some  men  of  interest, ' 
procure  an  order  from  the  court  for  a  passage  in  one  of  them. 

Mrs.  Mason  desires  to  be  kindly  remembered  to  you  and  joins 
in  wishing  you  a  restoration  to  health,  and  a  safe  return  to  your 
country  and  friends,  with 

Dear  George, 

Your  affectionate  father, 

G.  Mason. 

P.  S. — Under  the  same  cover  you  will  have  a  letter  upon  pub- 
lic affairs.' 

Virginia,  Gunston  Hall,  June  3d,  1781. 

Dear  George  : — Your  brother  William  writes  you  by  this 
opportunity.  He  returned  some  time  ago  from  South  Carolina, 
where  he  commanded  a  company  of  volunteers  (75  fine  young 
fellows  from  this  county).  He  had  a  rough  campaign  of  it,  and 
has  acquired  the  reputation  of  a  vigilant  and  good  officer  ;  and 
I  think  is  greatly  improved  by  the  expedition.  Your  brother 
Thomson  has  lately  returned  from  a  tour  of  militia-duty  upon 
James  River.  He  commanded  a  platoon,  in  a  pretty  close  action 
at  Williamsburg,  and  behaved  with  proper  coolness  and  intrep- 
idity.   He  is  now  from  home  or  would  have  wrote  you. 

I  have  written  you  very  fully  lately  upon  domestic  subjects ; 
but  I  am  not  able  to  give  you  any  agreeable  public  news. 
Our  affairs  have  been,  for  some  time,  growing  from  bad  to 
worse.  The  enemy's  fleet  commands  our  rivers,  and  puts  it  in 
their  power  to  remove  their  troops,  from  place  to  place,  when  and 
where  they  please  without  opposition ;  so  that  we  no  sooner 
collect  a  force  sufficient  to  counteract  them  in  one  part  of  the 
country,  but  they  shift  to  another,  ravaging,  plundering,  and  de- 
stroying everything  before  them.  Our  militia  turn  out  with  great 
spirit,  and  have  in  several  late  actions,  behaved  bravely  ;  but  they 
are  badly  armed  and  appointed.  General  Green,  with  about 
1,200  regular  troops  and  some  militia,  is  in  South  Carolina  ;  where 
he  has  taken  all  the  enemy's  posts,  except  Charlestown.  The 
enemy's  capital  object,  at  this  time,  seems  to  be  Virginia. 
General  Philips  died  lately  in  Petersburg  ;  upon  which  the  com- 
mand of  the  British  troops  there  devolved  upon  Arnold  ;  but  Ld. 

'  MS.  Letter. 


1 6        LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

Cornwallis,  quitting  North  Carolina,  has  since  joined  Arnold, 
with  about  1,200  infantry  and  300  cavalry,  and  taken  the  chief 
command  of  their  army  in  Virginia,  now  consisting  of  about  5,000 
men  :  They  have  crossed  James  River,  and  by  the  latest  accounts 
were  at  Westover ;  their  light  horse  having  advanced  as  far  as 
Hanover  Court  House ;  They  have  burned  Page's  warehouses, 
where  the  greatest  part  of  the  York  River  tobacco  was  collected  ; 
they  had  before  burned  most  of  the  tobacco  upon  James  River, 
and  have  plundered  great  part  of  the  adjacent  county.  The 
Marquis  De  La  Fayette  is  about  twenty  miles  below  Fredericks- 
burg with  about  1,200  regulars  and  3,000  militia,  waiting  the 
arrival  of  General  Waine,  with  about  1,500  regular  troops  of 
the  Pennsylvania  line. 

We  have  had  various  accounts  of  the  sailing  of  a  French  fleet, 
with  a  body  of  land  forces,  for  America;  should  they  really 
arrive  it  would  quickly  change  the  face  of  our  affairs,  and  infuse 
fresh  spirits  and  confidence  ;  but  it  has  been  so  long  expected  in 
vain,  that  little  credit  is  now  given  to  reports  concerning  it. 

You  know  from  your  own  acquaintance  in  this  part  of  Virginia 
that  the  bulk  of  the  people  here  are  staunch  Whigs,  strongly 
attached  to  the  American  cause  and  well  affected  to  the  French 
alliance  ;  yet  they  grow  uneasy  and  restless,  and  begin  to  think 
that  our  allies  are  spinning  out  the  war,  in  order  to  weaken 
America  as  well  as  Great  Britain,  and  thereby  leave  us  at  the  end 
of  it,  as  dependent  as  possible  upon  themselves. 

However  unjust  this  opinion  may  be,  it  is  natural  enough  for 
planters  and  farmers,  burdened  with  heavy  taxes,  and  frequently 
dragged  from  their  familys  upon  military  duty,  on  the  continual 
alarms  occasioned  by  the  superiority  of  the  British  fleet.  They 
see  their  property  daily  exposed  to  destruction,  they  see  with 
what  facility  the  British  troops  are  removed  from  one  part  of  the 
continent  to  another,  and  with  what  infinite  charge  and  fatigue 
ours  are,  too  late,  obliged  to  follow ;  and  they  see  too  very  plainly, 
that  a  strong  French  fleet  would  have  prevented  all  this.  If  our 
allies  had  a  superior  fleet  here,  I  should  have  no  doubt  of  a 
favorable  issue  to  the  war,  but  without  it,  I  fear  we  are  deceiving 
both  them  and  ourselves,  in  expecting  we  shall  be  able  to  keep 
our  people  much  longer  firm,  in  so  unequal  an  opposition  to  Great 
Britain.    France  surely  intends  the  separation  of  these  States  for- 


LETTER   TO   THOMAS  NELSON.  1/ 

ever  from  Great  Britain.  It  is  highly  her  interest  to  accomplish 
this ;  but  by  drawing  out  the  thread  too  fine  and  long,  it  may 
unexpectedly  break  in  her  hands. 

God  bless  you,  my  dear  child  1  and  grant  that  we  may  again 
meet,  in  your  native  country,  as  freemen,  otherwise,  that  we  never 
see  each  other  more,  is  the  prayer  of 

Your  affectionate  father, 

G.  Mason/ 

It  seems  not  unlikely  that  this  latter  interesting  and 
patriotic  letter  may  have  had  some  influence  with  the 
French  Court,  and  hastened  the  arrival  of  the  French  fleet. 
The  Honorable  James  M.  Mason,  who  possessed  a  copy  of  it 
which  he  transcribed  for  the  "Virginia  Historical  Register," 
wrote  to  the  editor  that  "the  indorsement  on  [the  copy] 
shows  that  the  original  had  been  by  Dr.  Franklin  put  into 
the  hands  of  the  Count  de  Vergennes — doubtless  from  the 
tenor  of  the  letter,  intended  by  Dr.  F.  to  stimulate  the 
government  of  France  to  send  to  the  revolted  colonies  the 
promised  succour.  The  concluding  paragraph,"  adds  Mr. 
Mason,  "you  will  agree  with  me,  I  think,  would  have 
adorned  the  ages  of  Brutus  and  Manlius.*' 

In  Gen.  John  Mason's  recollections  of  his  childhood  he 
mentions  that  the  last  tutor  that  his  father  had  at "  Gunston  " 
was  a  Mr.  Constable,  who  was  a  native  of  Scotland,  and  was 
engaged  in  that  country  to  come  over  to  Virginia  as  a 
teacher  in  Colonel  Mason's  family.  In  1781  Mr.  Constable 
wished  to  leave  Virginia  to  make  his  home  in  the  West 
Indies,  and  Colonel  Mason  wrote  to  Thomas  Nelson,  then 
governor  of  the  State,  to  obtain  a  passport  for  him. 

Fairfax  County,  Gunston  Hall, 
Sir  :  September  3d,  1781. 

A  young  gentleman  (Mr.  David  Constable)  a  native  of  Scotland, 

from  the  college  of  Aberdeen,  has  lived  in  my  family  ever  since 

the  year  1774,  as  a  tutor  to  my  children,  during  which  time  he  has 

supported  a  very  good  character,  and  his  behaviour  has  been  un- 

>  Niles*  "  Principles  and  Acts  of  the  Revolution,"  p.  126  ;  "Virginia  His- 
torical Register,"  vol.  ii.,  p.  32  ;  "  Virginia  Calendar  Papers,"  vol.  ii.,  p.  141. 
Vol.  II— a 


1 8      LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE   OF  GEORGE  MASON, 

exceptionable,  in  every  instance,  but  refusing  the  oath  of  alle- 
giance to  the  commonwealth,  which  he  told  me  at  the  time  he  was 
induced  to  do  from  some  expectations  he  had  from  his  friends 
in  the  British  West  Indies,  where  he  intended  to  settle,  after  the 
expiration  of  his  engagements  in  my  family.  He  has  an  elder 
brother  Who  has  lived  many  years  in  the  island  of  St.  Christo- 
pher's, where  he  has  had  the  management  of  some  estates  belong- 
ing to  gentlemen  residing  in  Great  Britain,  and  has  acquired 
considerable  property.  From  this  brother  Mr.  Constable  has 
very  lately  received  a  letter,  informing  him  that  he  should  return 
to  Britain  the  beginning  of  next  winter,  to  repair  a  constitution 
injured  by  long  residence  in  a  warm  climate,  pressing  him  to 
come  to  St.  Christopher's  immediately,  and  promising  if  he 
arrived  while  he  remained  there,  to  give  him  an  estate  he  has 
in  the  island  and  put  all  his  agencies  into  his  hands.  This  is  so 
much  beyond  anything  Mr.  Constable  can  expect  in  Virginia  or 
may  ever  meet  with  hereafter,  that  out  of  friendship  to  a  man  who 
has  lived  so  many  years  in  my  family,  and  behaved  so  well  in  it, 
I  wish  him  enabled  to  avail  himself  of  it,  and  for  that  purpose 
must  entreat  your  Excellency  to  grant  him  a  passport  or  permit, 
to  go  with  a  flag  to  Lord  Comwallis's  army,  from  whence  he  may 
readily  obtain  a  passage  to  the  West  Indies.  And  his  speedy 
arrival  there  being  of  the  utmost  importance  to  him,  you  will 
oblige  me  exceedingly  in  transmitting  me  such  a  passport  by  the 
next  post.  This  favor  I  flatter  myself  will  be  granted  as  an  act  of 
the  last  session  of  Assembly  invests  the  governor  and  council  with 
such  a  power ;  as  Mr.  Constable's  detention  here  would  mate- 
rially injure  him  as  an  individual,  without  the  smallest  bene- 
fit to  the  American  cause,  and  as  it  is  not  in  his  power  to  give  any 
useful  intelligence  to  the  enemy,  or  if  it  was,  I  know  him  to  be  a 
man  of  more  honor  than  to  abuse  any  indulgence  you  shall  be 
pleased  to  grant  him,  and  can  venture  to  engage  for  his  conduct 
I  am,  with  the  greatest  esteem  and  respect 

Sir,  your  most  obedient,  humble  servant 

G.  Mason. 

P.  S.  If  Mr.  Constable  is  permitted  to  go  by  water  it  will 
enable  him  to  carry  his  books  and  other  effects  which  he 
CQuld  not  well  carry  by  land.' 

»  MS.  T-«ttcr. 


A  DINNER-PARTY  AT  **  MOUNT  VERNON^  I9 

Lafayette  passed  through  Colchester,  the  little  post  town 
near  "  Gunston,"  in  the  spring  of  1781,  and  the  tax  commis- 
sioners, one  of  whom  was  Martin  Cockbum,  George  Mason's 
friend,  and  another  Richard  Chichester,  whose  daughter 
married  one  of  Colonel  Mason's  sons,  gave  out  to  the  Mar- 
quis a  quantity  of  wheat  for  his  command.*  I,t '  is  very 
likely  that  Lafayette  visited  "  Gunston  "  at  this  time  and 
brought  messages  from  Washington  to  its  proprietor.  The 
army  of  Washington  was  on  its  way  in  September  to  the 
memorable  field  of  Yorktown,  and  great  preparations  were 
made  for  its  approach  in  the  counties  it  would  have  to 
traverse  from  Georgetown  to  Dumfries.  The  militia  were 
instructed  by  the  county  lieutenants,  through  letters  from 
the  commander-in-chief,  to  repair  the  roads  and  make 
them  passable  for  wagons.  The  baggage  wagons  of  the 
American  and  French  forces,  the  cavalry,  and  the  beef 
cattle  were  all  to  take  this  route.  Washington  wrote  to 
request  the  gentlemen  of  the  neighborhood,  as  a  pleasing 
mark  of  attention,  to  assist  the  French  officers,  Rocham- 
bcau,  Chastellux,  and  others,  with  their  carriages,  from 
point  to  point.  From  "  Mt.  Vernon "  they  were  to  be 
furnished  with  carriages  to  Dumfries,  where  new  relays 
were  requested  to  take  them  to  Fredericksburg.  Colonel 
Mason  must  have  met  these  distinguished  strangers  at 
this  time,  and  in  all  probability  his  equipage  was  at  their 
command.  Washington  arrived  at  "  Mt.  Vernon "  on  the 
9th  of  September,  Rochambeau,  Chastellux,  and  their 
suites  the  following  day.  A  dinner-party  was  given  at 
"  Mt.  Vernon"  on  the  nth,  and  the  next  morning  the 
journey  to  Williamsburg  was  resumed,  lasting  two  days 
longer.  This  was  the  first  time  Washington  had  been 
home  since  1775. 

Thomson  Mason,  who  was  living  at  his  country-seat  in 
Loudon  County,  wrote  to  Washington  offering  the  services 
of  his  two  sons  in  the  proposed  campaign. 


1  «• 


Virginia  Calendar  Papers/*  vol.  ii.,  p.  128. 


20    LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON 

Raspberry  Plain,  Sept.  26th,  1781. 
My  dear  General  : 

I  must  sincerely  congratulate  your  Excellency  upon  your  safe 
return  to  your  native  country,  and  look  upon  it  as  a  happy  pres- 
age of  putting  a  glorious  period  to  the  present  war. 

But  do  not  flatter  yourself  that  your  fatigues  are  to  end  with 
this  war.  No,  more  glorious  ones  are  yet  reserved  for  you,  in  rid- 
ding your  country  of  its  domestic  enemies,  more  silent  indeed, 
but  not  less  destructive,  than  its  foreign  invaders  ;  and  in  fixing 
some  permanent  constitution  that  may  render  us  happier  than  the 
present  ever  can  ;  it  is  my  most  ardent  wish  and  expectation,  that 
you  will  accomplish  all  this. 

Nothing  but  my  crazy  constitution  should  have  restrained  me 
from  thanking  your  Excellency  in  person  for  the  benefits  which 
I  as  a  private  citizen,  am  likely  to  enjoy  from  your  labors ;  but 
as  my  health  will  not  permit  me  to  undertake  so  long  a  journey, 
this  will  be  handed  to  you  by  one  of  my  two  eldest  sons.  The 
first  Stevens  Thomson  is  equipped  as  a  volunteer  horseman,  the 
second  having  served  out  his  tour  of  duty  as  an  ensign  in  the 
Loudon  militia,  is  also  desirous  of  serving  the  remainder  of  the 
campaign  as  a  volunteer,  to  which  I  have  consented  and  sent 
him  a  horse.  From  the  retired  privacy  in  which  they  have  been 
brought  up,  I  have  no  expectation  that  they  can  render  their 
country  any  effectual  service.  But  to  pay  a  grateful  respect  to 
General  Washington  is  a  duty  due  from  every  citizen  of  America, 
and  for  that  reason  only,  do  they  wait  upon  your  Excellency. 
In  whatever  capacity  you  may  employ  them  for  the  remainder  of 
the  campaign,  (and  I  can  part  with  them  no  longer,)  I  will  be  an- 
swerable they  will  discharge  their  duty  with  bravery,  secrecy  and 
integrity ;  and  the  oldest  is  tolerably  ready  at  most  kinds  of 
business. 

I  have  the  honor  to  be,  with  the  greatest  respect  and  esteem, 

your  Excellency's  most  devoted,  obliged  and  affectionate,  humble 

servant, 

Thomson  Mason. 

The  surrender  of  Comwallis  took  place  on  the  19th  of 
October,  and  a  few  days  later  Colonel  Mason  had  occasion 

'  Washington  MSS.,  State  Department. 


YORK  TOWN,  21 


to  write  to  Robert  Carter  of  "  Nomini,"  when  he  refers  to 
the  recent  victory. 

GuNSTON  Hall,  October  27th,  1781. 

Dear  Sir  : 

The  bearer,  Capt.  Cleon  Moore,  a  neighbor  and  particular 
friend  of  mine  waits  on  you  to  rent  some  of  your  lands  in  Prince 
William  County.  As  I  thought  it  probable  that  the  abuses  too 
frequent  among  tenants  might  make  you  cautious  of  renting  lands 
to  a  stranger,  I  take  the  liberty  of  introducing  Capt.  Moore  to 
you,  as  a  gentleman  whose  integrity  and  punctuality  in  whatever 
contract  he  makes  with  you,  I  think  may  be  relied  on,  and  one  to 
whom  I  would  most  readily  rent  lands  myself,  if  I  had  any  which 
suited  him. 

I  congratulate  you  on  the  late  signal  success  of  our  arms,  which 
there  is  reason  to  hope  will  lay  the  foundation  of  a  safe  and  last- 
ing peace. 
I  beg  my  compliments  to  your  lady  and  family,  and  am, 
Dear  Sir, 

Your  most  obedient  servant, 

G.  Mason. 
Hon.  Robert  Carter, 

Nominy,  Westmoreland.* 

In  Congress  at  this  time  the  land  companies  were  pushing 
their  claims  to  the  Western  territory,  and  they  were  sup- 
ported in  their  pretensions  by  those  States  whose  selfish 
and  short-sighted  policy  was  opposed  to  the  acknowledgment 
of  Virginia's  charter  rights — rights  in  which  a  principle  was 
involved  most  important  to  the  autonomy  of  all  the  States. 
Madison  wrote  indignantly  from  Philadelphia  to  Jefferson  in 
January,  1782,  on  this  subject.  The  memorial  of  the  In- 
diana Company  had  been  justified  by  Congress,  in  spite  of 
the  emphatic  protest  of  the  Viginia  delegates,  though  so 
clearly  an  infringement  upon  Virginia's  sovereignty.  Madi- 
son  wished  to  receive  from  Virginia  "an  accurate  and  full 
collection  of  the  documents  which  relate  to  the  subject." 

*  MS.  Letter. 


22      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON 

He  sent  the  proceedings  of  Congress  to  his  State  while  the 
Assembly  was  in  session,  but  to  his  mortification  they  were 
not  received  in  time.  He  had  hoped  that  Jefferson  would 
have  undertaken  the  task  of  preparing  and  forwarding  these 
papers;  and  as  it  was,  he  found  himself  left  without  ade- 
quate material  to  contradict  the  calumnies  and  misrepresen- 
tations that  were  rife.  He  had  evidently  written  to  George 
Mason  to  aid  him,  for  he  adds :  *'  Colonel  Mason's  industry 
and  kindness  have  supplied  us  with  some  valuable  papers 
and  remarks."  There  had  also  been  sent  Joseph  Jones 
"  some  judicious  remarks  "  by  Edmund  Pendleton.* 

Jefferson  at  this  time  was  at  "  Monticello  **  by  the  bedside 
of  his  sick  wife,  and  no  assistance  could  be  expected  from 
him.  At  the  spring  session  of  the  Assembly  in  1782,  a  com- 
mittee had  been  appointed  "  to  state  the  title  of  Virginia  to 
western  territory,"  and  this  committee  consisted  of  Jefferson, 
George  Mason,  Edmund  Randolph,  Arthur  Lee,  and  Dr. 
Thomas  Walker.  Though  Colonel  Mason  was  not  in  the 
Assembly,  his  name  was  the  first  one  proposed,  as  Randolph 
tells  us.  He  was  known  to  be  an  authority  on  this  subject, 
and  in  the  task  assigned  the  committee  it  was  anticipated 
that  he  would  take  the  lead.  Edmund  Randolph  writes  to 
Arthur  Lee :  "  I  expected  the  first  movement  from  him 
[George  Mason],  as  being  the  first  in  nomination.  Mr.  Jef- 
ferson's domestic  happiness  is  threatened  with  too  g^reat  an 
interruption  by  the  illness  of  his  wife,  to  suffer  him  to  enter 
into  the  researches  which  our  subject  requires.  Should  I 
be  so  unfortunate  as  not  to  hear  from  Col.  Mason  on  this 
weighty  business,  notwithstanding  your  request  to  him  to 
communicate  with  me,  I  shall  certainly  write  to  him,  urge 
him  to  assist  his  country,  and  through  me  correspond  with 
Mr.  Jefferson  and  Dr.  Walker."  * 

In  response  to  this  call  upon  him,  George  Mason  wrote 
the  following  statement  of  Virginia's  title,  in  a  letter  to 
Edmund  Randolph. 

*  "Madison  Papers,"  vol.  i.,  p.  109. 

'  Lee  Papers,  Southern  Literary  Messenger^  185S. 


LETTER   TO  EDMUND  RANDOLPH.  2% 

GuNSTON  Hall,  October  19,  178a. 
Dear  Sir  : 

Your  favor  of  the  30th  of  August  was  so  long  on  the  road  that 
it  did  not  reach  me  until  a  few  days  ago.  I  must  beg  pardon  for 
not  writing  sooner  to  you  and  the  other  gentlemen  of  the  Com- 
mittee for  stating  the  title  of  Virginia  to  her  western  territory. 
The  truth  is  I  was  somewhat  embarrassed  by  an  appointment, 
which  I  was  far  from  desiring  or  expecting ;  and  which  I  had  not 
an  opportunity  of  refusing,  as  I  should  have  done,  had  I  received 
notice  of  it  before  the  last  session  ended.  I  quitted  my  seat  in 
the  House  of  Delegates,  from  a  conviction  that  I  was  no  longer 
able  to  do  any  essential  service.  Some  of  the  public  measures 
have  been  so  contrary  to  my  notions  of  policy  and  of  justice 
that  I  wished  to  be  no  further  concerned  with,  or  answerable 
for  them ;  and  to  spend  the  remnant  of  my  life  in  quiet  and 
retirement.  Yet  with  all  her  faults,  my  country  will  ever  have 
my  warmest  wishes  and  affections ;  and  I  would  at  any  time, 
most  cheerfully  sacrifice  my  own  ease  and  domestic  enjoyments 
to  the  public  good.  But  though  I  look  upon  asserting  the  right 
to  our  western  territory,  and  thereby  putting  a  stop  to  the 
dangerous  usurpations  of  Congress,  before  they  shall  have  been 
established  into  precedents,  to  be  a  matter  of  the  utmost  import- 
ance, I  do  not  know  that  it  is  in  my  power  to  give  the  committee 
any  assistance.  My  distance  from  the  seat  of  government,  and 
the  public  archives,  disables  me  from  investigating  the  subject. 
What  evidence  had  occurred  to  me  I  sent  you  last  year  by  our 
friend  Mr.  May ;  and  I  have  since  put  into  the  hands  of  Dr. 
Lee  an  official  copy  of  all  the  council-entries  for  lands  upon  the 
western  waters.  These  necessarily  imply  an  equal  extension  of 
our  laws  and  jurisdiction  ;  and  upon  the  exercise  of  jurisdiction, 
under  the  former  as  well  as  the  present  government,  our  title,  in 
my  opinion,  in  a  great  measure  depends.  Among  the  council- 
entries  there  is  one  for  fifty  thousand  acres  of  land,  near  forty 
years  ago,  upon  the  Mississippi,  beginning  at  the  confluence  of 
the  Ohio  and  Mississippi,  and  running  up  both  rivers  to  include 
the  quantity.  And  the  royal  instructions  to  Sir  William  Gooch, 
respecting  the  Ohio  Company  in  1749,  is  to  grant  lands  on  either 
side  the  Ohio  river,  "  within  our  colony  of  Virginia."  Governor 
Dinwiddie,  by  proclamation  in   1754,  offered  a  bounty  of  two 


24     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

hundred  thousand  acres  of  land,  upon  the  Ohio  River,  to  the 
officers  and  soldiers  of  the  First  Virginia  Regiment,  commanded 
by  Colonel  Washington  (now  his  Excellency,  .General  Washing- 
ton), which  was  afterwards  surveyed  accordingly,  and  patents 
granted,  in  the  time  of  Lord  Botetourt  and  Lord  Dunmore. 
There  were,  besides,  a  great  many  patents  and  surveys  upon 
record,  and  in  the  secretary's  office,  under  the  former  govern- 
ment, some  of  them  of  pretty  old  standing  ;  and  a  great  number 
of  inhabitants  settled  in  that  part  of  Augusta  County  which  lay 
beyond  the  Alleghany  mountains  (upon  the  different  branches  of 
the  western  waters),  under  the  particular  encouragement  of  the 
Virginia  laws,  which,  having  received  the  royal  assent,  were  con- 
stitutional acts  of  the  British  government.  Dr.  Walker  is  better 
acquainted  with  the  extent  and  dates  of  these  settlements,  sur- 
veys, and  grants  than  most  men  in  America,  and  knows  that  the 
principal  water-courses,  &c.,  received  their  names  from  Virginia 
settlers.  Col.  Thomas  Lewis  is  also  very  capable  of  giving 
information  upon  this  subject.  If  I  mistake  not,  two  or  three 
counties  (Botetourt  and  Fincastle,  besides  the  district  of  West- 
Augusta)  were  separated  from  that  part  of  Augusta  County  which 
lay  beyond  the  Alleghany  mountains  ;  civil  and  military  jurisdic- 
tion regularly  exercised,  and  representation  in  the  Virginia 
legislature  enjoyed  there,  before  the  present  Revolution.  And 
that  more  counties  were  not  erected  there  was  owing  to  a  royal 
instruction  of  a  very  alarming  and  tyrannical  nature,  restraining 
the  governor  from  assenting  to  any  law  for  erecting  new  counties, 
unless  a  clause  was  inserted  to  deprive  such  new  counties  of  the 
right  of  representation  in  the  legislature  ;  which  being  evidently 
calculated  to  maintain  an  undue  influence  of  the  crown  in  our 
General  Assembly,  no  such  clause  was  submitted  to.  The  gov- 
ernor had  recourse  to  the  power  of  the  prerogative,  and  instead 
of  a  new  county,  established  the  district  of  West-Augusta  (to 
the  north-westward)  over  the  Alleghany  mountains  ;  in  which  he 
commissioned  civil  magistrates  and  militia  officers,  and  courts 
were  regularly  held  there,  suits  brought,  judgments  granted,  deeds 
recorded,  &c.  In  the  year  1775,  ^^^  district  of  West-Augusta 
sent  two  representatives,  John  Harney  and  George  Roots,  Esqrs., 
to  the  general  convention  at  Richmond,  where  they  were  re- 
ceived ;  and  the  inhabitants  of  the  said  district  continued  to  send 


THE    TREATY  OF  LANCASTER.  2$ 

their  representatives  to  the  Virginia  legislature,  until  the  same 
was  formed  into  three  distinct  counties,  Ohio,  Monongalia,'  and 
Youghyoughgaine  ;  which  counties  have  regularly  ever  since 
sent  representatives  to  the  House  of  Delegates  and  the  Senate. 
Soon  after  the  present  Revolution,  the  county  of  Kentucky  was 
separated  from  Botetourt  and  Fincastle^  upon  the  Ohio,  to  the 
south-westward  ;  which  has  since  been  divided  into  three  coun- 
ties, Fayette,  Lincoln,  and  Jefferson.  Towns  have  been  laid 
off,  courts  established,  and  civil  and  military  jurisdiction  regularly 
exercised  in  these  counties,  and  each  of  them  represented  in  the 
Virginia  legislature  ;  several  thousand  inhabitants  are  settled  in 
them,  all  deriving  their  titles  from  Virginia,  subject  to  her  laws, 
and  to  all  intents  and  purposes  her  citizens.  The  British  posts, 
within  our  chartered  territory,  at  Kaskaskie  upon  the  Mississippi, 
and  St.  Vincents  upon  the  Obache,  have  been  reduced  by  Virginia  \ 
militia,  without  any  assistance  from  or  charge  to  the  United 
States,  and  a  garrison,  as  well  as  the  civil  establishment,  under 
the  sole  direction  and  at  the  sole  expense  of  the  Virginia  govern- 
ment, has  been  maintained  there. 

The  purchase  at  the  Treaty  of  Lancaster  in  1743  was  made 
with  Virginia  money  ;  and  if  I  remember  right,  there  is  a  clause 
showing  that  it  was  made  for  the  use  and  benefit  of  the  colony 
of  Virginia,  as  far  westward  as  his  majesty  should  at  any  time 
choose  to  extend  the  settlements.  It  is  evident,  from  the  royal  I 
instructions  in  1749  to  Sir  William  Gooch,  Lieutenant-Governor/ 
of  Virginia,  that  the  crown  directed  the  settlements  to  be 
extended  over  the  Ohio  river  ;  and  several  subsequent  laws 
were  made  for  their  encouragement.  The  purchase  of  Lancaster 
was  made  in  the  reign  of  George  the  second^  when  just  regard 
was  paid  to  the  constitutional  rights  of  the  American  colonies. 
It  was  made  by  Virginia  commissioners  appointed  for  that 
purpose ;  and  from  the  proceedings  upon  record,  it  appears  that 
the  whole  transaction  was  fair,  open,  and  in  the  presence  of  the 
commissioners  and  governors  of  the  other  colonies,  particularly 
the  province  of  New  York,  which  a  select  committee  of  Congress 
have  lately  discovered  had  always  the  right  to  these  lands. 
The  purchase  at  Fort  Stanwix  (which  in  fact  was  only 
purchasing  the  same  lands  over  again,  for  ministerial  pur- 
poses,  which  had  been   before   purchased   and  paid   for)   was 


26     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

made  in  the  reign  of  George  the  thirds  in  the  year  1768, 
when  the  rights  of  the  colonies  had  been  repeatedly  violated,  and 
under  the  direction  of  that  ministry  which  formed  the  system 
for  enslaving  America,  one  of  the  first  steps  to  which  was  dis- 
membering the  old  colonies,  and  erecting  new  ones  more  immedi- 
ately dependant  upon  the  crown  and  the  commands  of  the 
ministry.  The  whole  transaction  wore  the  face  of  mystery  and 
knavery ;  for  though  Dr.  Walker  was  there  as  a  public  commis- 
sioner for  Virginia,  he  was  refused  access  to  the  conferences,  the 
greatest  caution  was  used  to  conceal  from  him  what  they  were 
about,  and  every  thing  until  the  business  was  finished,  was  con- 
ducted privately  with  the  Indian  chiefs,  by  Sir  William  Johnston 
and  the  traders.  The  substance  of  these  facts  was  proved  by  the 
oath  of  Dr.  Walker,  on  his  examination  in  the  House  of  Dele- 
gates, upon  the  hearing  of  the  Indiana  Company's  title.  It  was 
also  proved  by  the  depositions  on  the  same  trial,  that  the  tribu- 
taries of  the  Six  Nations  had  been  totally  expelled  from  this  side 
the  Ohio  to  the  other  (from  whence  they  never  returned)  and  the 
country  conquered  in  the  course  of  the  last  war  ;  and  that  before 
the  treaty  at  Fort  Stanwix,  there  were  several  Virginia  settlers 
upon  the  very  lands  purchased  by  Trent  and  Sir  William  John- 
ston for  the  Indiana  Company.  But  if  these  damning  circum- 
stances were  not  in  the  case,  the  purchase  made  by  the  crown 
at  the  treaty  of  Fort  Stanwix  ought  not  to  operate  to  the  injury, 
but  inure  to  the  benefit  of  the  colony  to  whom  the  country  had 
been  originally  granted,  as  all  the  former  purchases  from  the 
Indians  had  done.  If  such  purchases  could  operate  against  the 
title  of  Virginia,  they  would  have  operated  against  the  title  to  the 
Northern  Neck,  the  greater  part  of  which  was  possessed  by  the 
Indians  when  the  grant  was  made  by  Charles  II.,  and  not  pur- 
chased from  them  for  many  years  after.  So  late  as  Queen 
Anne's  reign  (when  Governor  Spotswood  presided  here)  the 
Blue  Ridge  of  mountains  was  by  a  solemn  treaty  fixed  as  the 
boundary  between  the  English  subjects  and  the  Indians,  yet  in 
the  reign  of  George  the  second  the  king  and  council  gave  Lord 
Fairfax  a  judgment  for  the  lands  to  the  fountain  head  of  Potomac 
river,  fourscore  miles  beyond  the  Blue  Ridge.  As  our  settle- 
ments were  extended,  the  wild  game  destroyed,  and  the  country 
rendered  unfit  for  the  savage  life,  the  Indians  have  been  forced 


VIRGINIA'S   TITLE    TO    WESTERN  LANDS,  2/ 

to  remove  further,  for  the  convenience  of  hunting.  As  they 
retired,  purchase  after  purchase  hath  been  made  from  them,  and 
temporary  lines  and  boundaries,  for  the  sake  of  peace,  from  time 
to  time  accordingly  settled  between  them  and  the  English 
inhabitants  here,  but  none  of  them  have  ever  been  considered 
as  at  all  affecting  the  title  of  Virginia.  When  the  colony  of 
Virginia  was  first  settled,  it  was  without  any  previous  purchase 
from  the  Indians.  The  first  lands  purchased  from  the  Indians 
were  only  upon  and  near  the  mouths  and  larger  parts  of  the 
rivers,  then  to  the  falls  of  the  said  rivers,  then  to  the  Blue  Ridge  of 
mountains,  and  afterwards  (before  the  unnecessary  purchase  at 
Fort  Stanwix)  as  far  westward  as  the  claim  of  Great  Britain 
extended.  Most  of  these  purchases  were  made  subsequent  to 
the  actual  settlement  and  occupation  of  part  of  the  lands  pur- 
chased. It  is  about  sixty  years  ago  since  the  people  of  Virginia 
settled  the  country  over  the  Blue  Ridge,  and  near  forty  years 
since  they  began  to  settle  beyond  the  Appalatian  or  Alleghany 
mountains  ;  but  the  purchase  at  Lancaster  was  not  made  until 
1743,  nor  the  purchase  at  Fort  Stanwix  till  1768.  It  has  been 
objected  to  the  treaty  at  Lancaster,  and  urged  as  a  proof  that 
the  Indians  were  imposed  on,  that  they  sold  their  whole  country, 
or  in  the  common  phrase,  that  they  sold  themselves  out  of  house 
and  home  ;  but  this  is  a  false  suggestion.  The  country  back  of 
New  York  adjacent  to  Lake  Ontario,  was  originally  and  still  is 
the  country  and  habitation  of  the  Iroquois  or  Six  Nations  ;  and 
this  it  will  be  found  (I  believe  upon  due  examination)  was  the 
country  which  they  put  under  the  protection  of  the  New  York 
govemmeilt,  and  perhaps  also  their  beaver-hunting  country, 
between  that  and  the  great  lakes.  The  country  upon  the  Ohio, 
above  the  Tennessee  river,  was  what  they  called  their  con- 
quered lands,  from  which  they  had  totally  extirpated  the  original 
inhabitants,  and  afterwards  permitted  the  Delawares  from  the 
river  Delaware,  and  the  Shawnese  from  Potomac,  with  some 
other  small  tribes,  to  live  there  as  their  tributaries  :  These  lands 
being  of  little  use  to  them,  and  their  right  precarious,  it  may  be 
presumed  they  were  desirous  to  sell.  If  according  to  the  opin- 
ion of  the  best  writers,  the  occupation  of  a  few  hordes  of  savages 
cannot  give  right  to  an  extensive  territory,  as  being  contrary  to 
the  primary  laws  of  nature,  a  conquest  which  utterly  extirpates 


28      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON, 

the  inhabitants,  and  leaves  the  country  desolate,  being  more  con- 
trary to  the  laws  of  nature,  can  confer  no  right  on  the  conqueror. 
If  the  country  is  considered  in  the  light  of  derelict  lands,  which 
the  first  possessor  without  any  other  claim,  has  a  right  to  occupy 
and  enjoy,  a  fortiori  had  the  colony  of  Virginia,  having  a  pre- 
vious title,  a  right  to  possess  and  occupy  them,  as  it  has  done. 

The  English  and  American  maps  have  uniformly  laid  down 
Virginia  across  the  continent,  to  the  westward,  until  the  Treaty 
of  Paris  in  1762,  and  since  to  the  river  Mississippi,  that  having 
been  then  established  the  boundary  between  the  British  and 
French  dominions.  Many  solemn  acts  of  the  British  govern- 
ment, at  different  periods,  have  recognized  the  right  of  Virginia 
to  her  western  territory,  nor  can  there  be  found  any  one  act  of 
government  impeaching  or  invalidating  it,  until  the  conclusion  of 
the  last  war,  and  after  the  adoption  of  that  system,  which  by 
compelling  America  to  assert  her  rights  with  the  sword,  has  pro- 
duced the  present  Revolution.  Long  before  the  Articles  of  Con- 
federation (and  I  think  previous  to  the  American  Declaration  of 
Independence)  the  Virginia  legislature,  in  that  act  which  formed 
our  constitution,  had  plainly  described  and  declared  the  extent 
of  our  western  territory.  This  was  notorious  to  Congress,  when 
the  Articles  of  Confederation  were  formed,  the  sovereignty  of 
each  State  respectively  secured  to  it,  the  mutual  guarranty  stipu- 
lated, and  the  proviso  inserted  "  that  no  State  shall  be  deprived 
of  territory  for  the  benefit  of  the  United  States."  It  was  upon 
these  express  conditions  that  Virginia  acceded  to  the  Articles  of 
Confederation ;  the  present  attempt,  therefore,  to  dismember 
Virginia,  without  her  consent,  is  a  flagrant  breach  of  public 
faith,  and  if  carried  into  execution  dissolves  the  federal  com- 
pact, and  renders  it  no  longer  obligatory  upon  this  common- 
wealth. Congress  are  properly  the  delegates  of  the  different 
States,  with  certain  powers  defined  and  limited  by  the  Articles 
of  the  Confederation  ;  these  they  can  not  be  permitted  to  exceed, 
without  establishing  an  arbitrary  and  tyrannical  aristocracy ;  for 
if  under  pretence  of  public  utility,  necessity,  or  under  any  pre- 
tence whatsoever,  they  can,  in  one  instance,  exceed  the  powers 
delegated  to  them,  they  may  in  another,  or  in  a  hundred  ;  every 
usurpation  will  be  urged  as  a  precedent  for  others,  and  main- 
tained by  the  command  which  they  have  (and  must  have)  of  our 


CLAIM  OF  CONGRESS   TO  SOVEREIGNTY.  29 

fleets  and  armies.     They  may  in  time  proceed  to  fill  up  their  own 
vacancies,  vote  themselves  members  for  life,  and  what  not ! 

The  only  natural  and  safe  remedy  is,  for  every  State  to  have  a 
watchful  eye  over  this  great  American  council,  to  keep  them  con- 
stantly within  the  lines  of  the  Confederation,  and  to  resist  and 
reprobate  their  first  attempts  to  exceed  them.  This  was  intended, 
about  two  years  ago,  by  the  General  Assembly  of  Virginia,  in 
their  Remonstrance,  but  an  ill-judged  timidity  (miscalled  deli- 
cacy) in  our  delegates  at  that  time  (I  believe)  prevented  its  being 
entered  on  the  journals  of  Congress.  If  experience  shall  prove 
that  the  present  powers  of  Congress  are,  in  some  instances,  insuf- 
ficient, let  them  be  increased  by  additional  Articles  to  the  Con- 
federation, acceded  to,  after  due  deliberation,  by  all  the  States ; 
but  upon  no  pretence,  however  plausible,  without. 

It  is  strongly  provided  by  the  Articles  of  Confederation  (with- 
out whi^ji  'they  would  never  have  been  acceded  to  by  the  difiFer- 
ent  States)  that ''  each  State  retains  its  sovereignty,  freedom  and 
independenc1^,  and  every  jurisdiction  and  right,  which  is  not  by 
this  Confederation  expressly  delegated  to  the  United  States  in 
Congress  assembled."  Yet  the  claim  of  Congress  to  the  unap- 
propriated lands  is  founded  upon  the  assertion  that  the  sov- 
ereignty of  Great  Britain  hath,  on  the  present  Revolution, 
descended  to  them,  as  representatives  of  all  the  Sta,tes,  though  it 
is  as  clear  as  the  sun  at  noonday,  that  it  has  not  descended  to 
them,  but  remains  to  each  individual  State,  respectively,  in  its 
own  right,  by  whom  alone  it  can  be  safely  exercised.  This  doc- 
trine of  •  sovereignty,  teeming  with  oppression,  and  striking  at| 
the  vitals  of  American  liberty,  has  been  eagerly  patronized  by  ^ 
Congress;  and  echoed  by  P[ain]e,  W[harto]n,  and  every  mer- 
cenary party-scribbler. 

Posterity  will  reflect  with  indignation  that  this  fatal  lust  of 
sovereignty,  which  lost  Great  Britain  her  western  world,  which 
covered  our  country  with  desolation  and  blood,  should  even 
during  the  contest  against  it,  be  revived  among  ourselves,  and 
fostered  by  the  very  men  who  were  appointed  to  oppose  it ! 

There  is  not  a  single  word  in  the  Articles  of  Confederation 
giving  Congress  a  power  of  limiting,  dividing,  or  parcelling  out 
any  of  the  thirteen  States,  or  of  erecting  new  ones.  The  four- 
teenth article  declares  that ''  Canada  acceding  to  this  Confedera- 


30     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON, 

tion,  and  joining  in  the  measures  of  the  United  States,  shall  be 
entitled  to  all  the  advantages  of  this  Union,  but  no  other  colony 
shall  be  admitted  into  the  same,  unless  such  admission  be  agreed 
to  by  nine  States."  This  evidently  relates  to  the  other  British 
colonies  of  Nova  Scotia  and  the  Floridas,  neither  of  which  is  to 
be  admitted  into  the  Union,  without  the  concurrence  of  nine 
States.  Yet  under  color  of  this  article.  Congress  assumes 
the  power  of  curtailing  and  dividing  the  different  States,  of 
depriving  them  of  territory  for  the  benefit  of  the  United  States 
(directly  contrary  to  the  Confederation),  of  demanding  cessions, 
and  of  erecting  new  States.  There  is  no  power  whatsoever  which 
they  may  not  with  equal  propriety  arrogate  to  themselves,  and 
pretend  to  derive  it  from  the  Articles  of  the  Confederation.  Did 
the  different  States  view  this  subject  impartially,  as  they  ought 
no  little  jealousy,  envy,  or  pique  to  any  particular  State,  no  local 
or  party  views  would  induce  them  to  connive  at  innovations  and 
unwarranted  assumptions  of  power,  which  if  continued,  must  end 
either  in  the  dissolution  of  the  federal  Union  or  the  destruction 
of  American  liberty.  To  show,  therefore,  the  total  absence  of 
power  in  Congress  on  this  occasion,  and  to  expose  the  danger  of 
their  usurping  it,  I  should  conceive  a  very  useful  part  of  the  work 
confided  to  the  committee  ;  and  preserving  good  manners  and 
decency  of  language,  I  think  the  subject  can  hardly  be  too  freely 
treated. 

It  is  worthy  of  observation  that  the  arguments  against  the 
chartered  title  of  Virginia  to  the  country  on  the  north-west  side 
the  Ohio,  if  they  prove  anything,  will  prove  it  part  of  the  new 
British  province  of  Quebec  or  Canada.  Because  by  an  act  of 
Parliament  in  the  latter  end  of  1773,  or  the  beginning  of  1774,  the 
boundaries  of  the  province  of  Quebec  or  Canada  were  extended 
so  as  to  include  the  whole  country  between  the  Ohio  and  the 
Mississippi  rivers  ;  and  this  being  done  before  the  separation  of 
the  colonies,  or  the  Declaration  of  Independence,  when  we  pro- 
fessed ourselves  British  subjects,  and  acknowledged  the  obligation 
of  their  laws,  except  on  the  subject  of  taxation,  the  authority  of 
Parliament  to  make  the  said  act  can  not  be  impeached  upon  any 
other  ground  than  the  title  of  some  of  the  old  colonies,  under 
their  charters,  to  the  country  so  included ;  and  that  the  British 
government  had  no  right  to  add  to  their  new  province  of  Quebec 


\ 


THE    VIRGINIA    CHARTERS.  3 1 

what  had  been,  long  before,  solemnly  granted  to  others.  Aware  of 
this,  and  to  prevent  too  sudden  an  alarm  or  opposition,  a  proviso 
was  inserted  in  the  act,  saving  to  the  other  colonies  the  lands 
within  their  respective  charters.  If,  therefore,  Congress  taking 
upon  itself  the  insidious  and  dangerous  work  of  curtailing  the 
boundaries  of  the  different  States,  should  set  aside  the  title  of 
Virginia,  and  Virginia  acquiesces  in  it,  that  country  will  thence- 
forward be  placed  in  the  same  predicament  with  the  undisputed 
part  of  Canada,  and  the  other  British  provinces  of  Nova  Scotia, 
and  the  East  and  West  Floridas ;  and  what  claim  or  demand 
could  the  United  States  or  any  of  them,  have  upon  it,  unless  they 
can  conquer  and  hold  it  by  force  of  arms  ?  Or  upon  a  negotiation 
of  peace  with  Great  Britain,  what  argument  could  we  fairly  urge 
for  contracting  the  lately  extended  boundaries  of  Canada  and 
reducing  it  to  its  former  limits  ?  Or  what  would  any  neutral  or 
mediating  power  probably  say  to  us  upon  such  an  occasion  ?  The 
consequences  of  suffering  a  British  colony  to  surround  great  part 
of  the  United  States,  and  extend  itself  between  them  and  the 
numerous  tribes  of  western  Indians,  are  too  obvious  to  need 
explanation  ;  and  this  subject  is  the  more  important,  as  it  may 
easily  be  foreseen  that  settling  the  bounds  of  Canada  will  be  one 
of  the  most  difficult  objects  of  a  treaty. 

I  have  not  by  me  the  copies  of  the  Virginia  charters  in  1606 
and  1609,  or  I  should  have  made  some  remarks  on  them,  endeav- 
oring to  show  that  Payne's  construction  of  them  is  capricious  and 
absurd,  as  several  of  his  other  strictures  are,  and  some  of  them 
founded  in  misrepresentation  and  falsehood  ;  that  the  description 
and  boundaries  are  intelligible,  and  admit  a  natural  and  easy  con- 
struction, the  charter  of  1609  confirming  and  enlarging,  not 
destroying  that  of  1606  ;  that  though  the  Virginia  Company  was 
dissolved,  and  the  government  resumed  by  the  crown,  the  charter, 
so  far  as  the  settlers  and  their  posterity  are  interested,  or  affected, 
remains  valid,  and  among  other  things,  the  covenant  in  the  char- 
ter of  1606,  that  no  new  colony  should  be  settled  to  the  westward, 
which  seems  to  have  been  one  of  the  causes  of  the  great  western 
extension  of  the  second  charter,  whereby  the  repetition  of  the 
former  clause  became  unnecessary ;  that  the  ancient  method  of 
granting  lands,  established  by  the  Virginia  Company  in  virtue  of 
their  charter,  always  continued  under  the  king's  government ; 


32      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

that  the  charter  granted  to  the  colony  of  Virginia  in  1667,  by  King 
Charles  the  second,  has  reference  to  the  country  described  in  the 
former  charter  of  1609,  and  by  recognising  and  confirming  the 
ancient  custom  of  granting  lands  for  the  importation  of  inhabi- 
tants, the  privileges  of  the  people,  and  the  jurisdiction  of  the 
colony,  has  forever  barred  the  crown  from  dismembering  the 
colony,  or  refusing  to  grant  lands  to  persons  coming  hither  to 
settle,  or  importing  others  ;  that  the  crown  has  always  considered 
the  charter  of  1667  in  this  light,  and  acted  accordingly,  until  the 
present  reign,  when  all  reverence  to  law  and  justice  was  thrown 
aside,  and  a  resolution  formed  to  abolish  the  ancient  constitution 
of  the  colonies,  annihilate  their  charters,  and  establish  despotism 
and  slavery  in  their  stead  ;  that  the  proclamation  of  1763  there- 
fore was  absolutely  illegal  and  void,  as  well  as  the  scheme  for 
erecting  the  new  province  of  Vandalia,  even  if  no  lands  had  been 
previously  granted,  or  inhabitants  settled  beyond  the  Alleghany 
Mountains.  And  as  to  what  has  been  said  of  the  acquiescence 
and  approbation  of  the  government  of  Virginia,  the  utmost  that 
is  asserted  only  shows  that  the  privy-council  of  Virginia  (holding 
their  places  at  pleasure,  and  totally  dependent  upon  the  ministry) 
did  not  venture  to  oppose  it. 

The  charters,  I  presume,  may  all  be  found  in  the  House  of 
Delegates'  office  :  I  had  them  all  in  my  possession  (made  up  in 
one  bundle)  when  I  was  formerly  appointed  to  settle  some  matters 
of  jurisdiction  in  Chespeake  Bay  and  Potomac  River  with  the 
State  of  Maryland,  but  our  Assembly  not  thinking  it  prudent  to 
enter  into  any  engagement  with  that  State,  while  it  refused  con- 
federating, I  returned  the  charters  into  the  House  of  Delegates 
at  the  clerk's  table.  If  any  of  the  observations  which  I  have 
scattered  up  and  down,  without  method  or  order,  will  be  of  use, 
they  are  very  much  at  the  committee's  service.  And  though  I 
hope  to  be  excused  from  taking  any  particular  part  in  this  busi- 
ness, for  the  reasons  I  have  already  given,  yet  if  the  gentlemen  of 
the  committee  conceive  I  can  be  useful  to  them  on  any  occasion, 
I  will  wait  on  them  (my  health  permitting)  at  any  time  and  place 
they  shall  be  pleased  to  appoint,  for  I  can  truly  say  there  are  no 
men  in  the  United  States  in  whom  I  can  more  cordially  confide, 
or  with  whom  I  would  more  cheerfully  act. 

I  must  entreat  them  to  consider  this  long  epistle  as  a  general 


LETTER    TO  HIS  SON  GEORGE.  33 

letter,  and  excuse  my  not  writing  to  each  particular  member.     I 

must  entreat  them,  too,  to  proceed   in   the  business,  without 

delaying  it  on  account  of 

Dear  Sir, 

Your  affectionate  and  obedient  servant, 

G.  Mason. 
Edmund  Randolph,  Esquire, 

Attorney-General.* 

George  Mason,  Jr.,  was  still  in  France,  and  John  Adams, 
who  was  in  Paris  in  the  winter  of  1782-3  negotiating  the 
treaty  of  peace,  mentions  in  his  journal  Mr.  Mason  among 
other  Americans  to  whom  he  extends  his  hospitality.  The 
following  letter  from  Colonel  Mason  to  his  son  gives  some 
public  as  well  as  personal  details  which  are  not  without 
interest.  There  would  seem  to  have  been  a  number  of 
his  countrymen  abroad,  at  this  time,  in  embarrassed  circum- 
stances, to  whom  Mr.  Mason  had  given  assistance,  and 
his  father  endorses  this  liberality  in  the  same  spirit  of  open- 
handed  sympathy. 

•*  GUNSTON  Hau.,  January  8th,  1783. 

''  As  to  the  money  you  have  spent  in  Europe,  provided  you  can 
satisfy  me  that  it  has  not  been  spent  in  extravagance,  dissipation, 
or  idle  parade,  I  don't  regard  it.  It  is  true,  I  have  a  large  family 
to  provide  for ;  and  that  I  am  determined,  from  motives  of 
morality  and  duty,  to  do  justice  to  them  all ;  it  is  certain  also 
that  I  have  not  lost  less  than  ten  thousand  pounds  sterling  by 
the  war,  in  the  depreciation  of  paper  money  and  the  loss  of 
the  profits  of  my  estate ;  but  think  this  a  cheap  purchase  of 
liberty  and  independence.  I  thank  God,  I  have  been  able,  by 
adopting  principles  of  strict  economy  and  frugality,  to  keep  * 
my  principal,  I  mean  my  country  estate,  unimpaired,  and  I  have 
suffered  little  by  the  depredations  of  the  enemy.  I  have  at  this 
time,  two  years'  rents  (you  know  mine  are  all  tobacco  rents) 
in  arrear  and  two  crops  uninspected  ;  so  that  if  a  peace  happens, 
it  will  find  me  plentiful  handed  in  the  article  of  tobacco,  which 

*  Mason  I'aj^crs. 
Vol.  II.— 3 


34      ^^PE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

will  then  be  very  valuable.  The  money  it  has  cost  you  to  relieve 
the  distresses  of  your  unfortunate  countrymen  was  worthily 
expended,  and  you  will  receive  retribution,  with  large  interest,  in 
heaven — ^but  in  order  to  shorten  the  time  of  credit  and  also  to 
entitle  myself  to  some  proportion  of  the  merit,  I  shall  insist  upon 
replacing  to  you  every  shilling  of  it  here  ;  I  hope  you  will  there- 
fore keep  an  exact  account  of  it. 

"  I  beg  you  will  freely  communicate  to  me  the  situation  of  your 
a£fairs  ;  and  if  there  should  be  a  necessity  of  making  you  remit- 
tances, I  will  endeavor  to  do  it  at  all  events,  though  it  must  be  by 
selling  some  of  the  produce  of  my  estate  at  an  undervalue. 
I  am  now  pretty  far  advanced  in  life,  and  all  my  views  are 
centred  in  the  happiness  and  welfare  of  my  children — you  will 
therefore  find  from  me  every  indulgence  which  you  have  a  right 
to  expect  from  an  affectionate  parent. 

''  I  have  been  for  some  time  in  retirement  and  shall  not  probably 
return  again  to  public  life ;  my  anxiety  for  my  country  in  these 
times  of  danger,  makes  me  sometimes  dabble  a  little  in  politics, 
and  keep  up  a  correspondence  with  some  men  upon  the  public 
stage.  You  know  I  am  not  apt  to  form  opinions  lightly  and 
without  due  examination.  And  I  can  venture  to  say  that  the 
French  court  and  nation  may  confide  in  the  honor  and  good  faith 
of  America.  We  reflect  with  gratitude  on  the  important  aids 
France  has  given  us ;  but  she  must  not,  and  I  hope  will  not, 
attempt  to  lead  us  into  a  war  of  ambition  or  conquest,  or  trail  us 
around  the  mysterious  circle  of  European  politics.  We  have 
little  news  worth  communicating — nothing  of  consequence  has 
happened  here  this  campaign,  the  enemy  having  generally  kept 
close  within  their  lines,  and  the  American  army  not  strong  enough 
to  force  them.  We  have  a  long  time  expected  the  evacuation  of 
Charlestown,  the  enemy  having  dismantled  their  outworks  and 
embarked  their  heavy  artillery  and  some  of  their  troops.  How- 
ever, by  the  last  accounts  (in  December)  they  had  still  a  garrison 
there.  By  late  accounts  from  Kentucky,  we  are  informed  that 
General  Qarke,  vrith  twelve  hundred  volunteers,  had  crossed  the 
Ohio  river  and  destroyed  six  of  the  Shawnese  towns,  destroying 
also  about  two  thousand  barrels  of  their  com  and  bringing  off 
furs  and  other  plunder  to  the  value  of  three  thousand  pounds, 
which  was  sold,  and  the  money  divided  among  his  men  ;  this  will 


i 


GENERAL   CLARKE  AND   THE   CHICKASAWS.  35 

probably  drive  these  savages  near  the  lalces  or  the  Mississippi 
Upon  Clarke's  return  the  Cbickasaws  sent  deputies  to  him  to  treat 
for  peace.  Everything  was  quiet  in  the  new  settlements,  and 
upwards  of  five  thousand  souls  have  been  added  to  them  since 
last  September.  The  people  there  are  extremely  uneasy  lest  the 
free  navigation  of  the  Mississippi  to  the  sea  should  not  be  secured 
to  them  upon  a  treaty  of  peace.  If  it  is  not,  it  will  occasion 
another  war  in  less  than  seven  years.  The  inhabitants  think  they 
have  a  natural  right  to  the  free,  though  not  the  exclusive,  naviga- 
tion of  thu  river,  and  in  a  few  years  they  will  be  strong  enough 
to  enforce  that  right" ' 

'  Niki,  "  Prindptes  vid  AcU  of  the  Revolation,"  p.  107. 


CHAPTER  II. 

THE   VEAR  OF  THK   PEACE. 
1783. 

In  March,  1783,  Colonel  Mason  addressed  a  letter  to 
General  Washington,  in  behalf  of  the  latter's  young  kins- 
man, Lawrence  Washington,  of  Chotank,  who  had  been 
engaged  in  a  duel  with  Mr.  Philip  Alexander,  in  which 
he  had  mortally  wounded  his  antagonist.  The  father  of 
Lawrence,  whom  George  Mason  designates  as  "old  Mr. 
Lawrence  Washington,"  was  evidently  the  same  person  to 
whom  General  Washington  left  a  bequest  in  his  will,  speak- 
ing of  htm  and  his  cousin,  Robert  Washington,  as  thu 
"  acquaintances  and  friends  of  his  juvenile  years."  They 
were  descendants  of  Lawrence,  the  brother  of  Col.  John 
Washington.  Lund  Washington  was  one  of  this  same 
family.' 

ViRQIHtA,  GUHSTON  HAIL, 

March  19th,  17S3. 
Dear  General  : 

My  motives  for  troubling  your  Excellency  at  this  particular 
time  are  motives  of  humanity.  Mr.  Lawrence  Washington,  Junr., 
who  will  deliver  this  has  been  unfortunately  engaged  in  a  duel,  or 
rather  an  affray,  with  Mr.  Philip  Alexander  of  Chotanck ;  in 
which  his  antagonist  was  mortally  wounded  and  died  six  or  seven 
days  after.  I  have  taken  some  pains  to  inform  myself  of  the  real 
truth  of  the  case,  and  have  seen  several  testimonials,  signed  by 

'  "  George  Washington  and  Mount  Vernon " ;  Moncuro  D.  Conway. 
"  Mamoin  of  the  I.ong  Iiland  Hutorical  Society,"  vol.  iv. 


LAWRENCE  WASHINGTON  AND  MR.  ALEXANDER.      37 

unprejudiced  persons  of  credit,  and  though  Mr.  Washington  may 
not  be  strictly  justifiable  in  a  legal  sense,  I  am  entirely  of  opinion 
that  he  has  done  no  more  than  any  man  of  sensibility  and  honour 
would  have  thought  himself  obliged  to  do  under  the  same  circum- 
stances of  provocation.  Mr.  Alexander  appears  to  have  been,  in 
every  instance,  the  aggressor ;  the  provocation  given  Mr.  Wash- 
ington was  of  the  most  interesting  and  aggravating  kind — an 
attempt  to  blast  the  reputation  of  a  young  lady  of  family  and 
character,  allied  to  him  by  the  nearest  ties  of  blood.  This  is  one 
of  the  few  cases  which  does  not  admit  the  usual  reparation  of 
other  wrongs,  in  a  court  of  justice  ;  a  young  lady's  character  being 
of  too  delicate  a  nature  to  be  submitted  to  such  an  investigation ; 
and  however  false  the  defamation,  however  generally  disbelieved, 
the  injury  is  lasting.  The  custom  of  the  world,  the  manners  of 
the  age  we  live  in,  the  voice  of  nature  calls  upon  relations 
and  friends  to  redress  an  injured  person,  who  from  the  natural 
weakness  and  incapacity  of  her  sex  is  deprived  of  the  means 
of  doing  it 

Mr.  Alexander  after  refusing  to  accept  a  challenge,  and  pro- 
fessing to  act  upon  the  defensive,  added  fresh  injuries  to  those 
he  had  already  offered,  and  continued  to  insult  and  abuse  Mr. 
Washington  in  the  grossest  manner ;  and  when  they  afterwards 
met  at  a  public  place  and  walked  out  together,  fired  his  pistol 
first  (at  not  more  than  a  yard's  distance)  with  a  manifest  intention 
to  kill  the  other,  before  he  knew  whether  it  was  Mr.  Washington's 
design  to  act  offensively  or  not ;  the  ball  missed  him,  though  so 
very  close  that  the  powder  burned  his  face.  Mr.  Washington 
instantly  stepped  back,  and  drawing  a  pistol  from  his  belt,  under 
his  great-coat,  shot  the  other  in  the  body,  which  brought  him  to 
the  ground.  This  was  done  in  the  sight  of  many  people,  and  I 
think  proves  that  Mr.  Washington,  in  firing  his  pistol,  acted  upon 
the  defensive.  The  only  circumstances  against  him  are  his  for- 
mer challenge  and  his  having  desired  Mr.  Alexander,  that  day, 
to  walk  aside  with  him.  Upon  the  whole,  though  I  think  Mr. 
Washington  may  safely  stand  his  trial,  and  trust  himself  in  the 
hands  of  an  honest  and  impartial  jury,  yet  he  has  been  judiciously 
advised  to  absent  himself  for  the  present,  until  men's  passions 
and  prejudices  have  subsided,  as  he  must  first  be  tried  by  an 
examining  court  in  the  county  where  the  deceased  had  many 


38      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

relatives  and  friends  :  and  the  circumstances  of  Mr.  Alexander's 
remaining  wounded  and  his  life  despaired  of,  several  days  before 
he  died,  during  which  time  most  of  the  neighbors  visited  him,  has 
contributed  not  a  little  to  heighten  the  prejudices  against  Mr. 
Washington.  Such  spectacles  naturally  excite  our  compassion 
and,  of  course,  our  resentment  against  the  man  who  has  been  the 
cause  ;  our  passions  are  inflamed  too  much  to  consult  our  reason  ; 
and  it  is  not  until  cool  reflection  returns  that  we  are  capable  of 
inquiring  into  the  merits.  For  these  reasons,  Mr.  Washington  has 
determined  to  pass  a  month  or  two  in  the  army,  if  you  shall  be 
pleased  to  permit  him  to  act  in  it  as  a  volunteer. 

I  am  well  apprized  of  your  Excellency's  strict  attention  to  the 
authority  of  the  civil  power,  and  thoroughly  sensible  how  greatly 
and  justly  it  has  endeared  your  character  to  your  fellow-citizens  ; 
I  should  therefore  be  one  of  the  last  men  in  the  world  who  would 
presume  to  recommend  to  your  countenance  or  protection  either 
a  criminal  or  a  fugitive  from  justice ;  but  I  think,  in  my  con- 
science, that  this  young  gentleman  has  been  rather  unfortunate 
than  culpable  ;  and  am  assured  and  convinced  he  means  to  return 
and  submit  himself  to  a  fair  trial,  by  the  laws  of  his  country  ;  if 
the  friends  of  the  deceased,  after  due  reflection,  shall  judge  fit  to 
prosecute  him ;  which  according  to  the  best  of  my  judgment  I 
think  I  should  not  do,  if  Mr.  Alexander  had  been  my  nearest 
relation. 

I  can  truly  declare  that  I  have  not  the  smallest  connection,  or 
even  acquaintance  with  either  of  the  parties.  I  own  I  can't  help 
feeling,  as  a  man  and  as  a  father,  for  old  Mr.  Lawrence  Washing- 
ton, who  is  a  very  worthy  man,  and  is  exceedingly  distressed  by 
this  unhappy  accident.  Your  Excellency's  permitting  his  son  to 
remain,  for  a  short  time,  in  the  army  will  alleviate  his  present 
distress,  and,  in  a  little  time,  I  hope,  he  will  have  nothing  to  fear. 
I  sincerely  wish  you  health,  and  every  felicity ;  and  with  sentiments 
of  the  highest  respect  and  esteem,  I  have  the  honour  to  be 

Your  Excellency's  most  affectionate  and  obedient  servant, 

G.  Mason. 
His  Excellency  General  Washington, 

Head  Quarters. 

P.  favour — Mr.  Lawrence  Washington,  Junr.' 

'  MS.  Letter. 


THE  REVOLUTIONARY   WAR  CONCLUDED.  39 

Thomson  Mason,  who  was  employed  to  defend  Mr. 
Washington,  also  wrote  to  the  Commander-in-chief  on  the 
same  subject,  the  17th  of  March,  from  '^  Chappawamsic.** 
He  enclosed  a  detailed  statement  of  the  difficulty  between 
Mr.  Lawrence  Washington  "  second  son  of  that  very  worthy 
man,  Mr.  Lawrence  Washington  of  Chetauque,"  and  "  Mr. 
Philip  Alexander,  a  son  of  John  Alexander  of  the  same 
place."    Thomson  Mason's  letter  concludes  in  these  words : 

''  Permit  me  now,  sir,  to  return  you  my  warmest  acknowledg- 
ments for  your  very  great  kindness  showed  to  my  son  Stevens 
Thomson  at  the  siege  of  York,  of  which  both  my  son  and  self 
retain  the  most  grateful  sense.  The  success  of  that  siege,  so 
glorious  to  your  Excellency,  gave  none  of  your  numerous  friends 
more  unfeigned  pleasure  than  your  Excellency's  most  obedient 

and  most  obliged  humble  servant, 

"Thomson  Mason."* 

The  preliminaries  of  the  treaty  of  peace  were  signed  by 
the  European  powers  in  January,  1783.  The  Tory  ministry 
of  Lord  North  had  given  place  to  the  Whigs  under  the 
Marquis  of  Rockingham.  Fox  was  at  the  head  of  the 
foreign  department,  and  Lord  Shelburne  had  charge  of  the 
colonies.  Fox  and  Shelburne  differed  on  the  question  of 
the  status  of  the  colonies,  whether  they  should  be  treated  as 
already  independent,  or  as  made  so  by  the  treaty.  Lord 
Shelburne  supported  the  latter  view,  and  carried  his  point. 
It  was  finally  decided,  through  the  suggestion  of  John 
Adams,  that  the  United  States  would  not  require  from 
Great  Britain  a  formal  declaration  of  their  independence,  if 
the  same  form  was  used  by  the  British  commission  treating 
with  them  as  was  used  in  treating  with  other  powers." 

Thomson  Mason,  in  a  letter  to  be  given  later,  compares  a 
certain  party  in  the  Virginia  Assembly  to  the  Shelburne 
faction  in  Parliament.  The  following  letter  was  written  by 
Colonel  Mason  to  Arthur  Lee,  than  in  Congress : 

>  Washington  MSS.,  Sute  Department. 

*  "  Life  of  John  Adams/'  p.  216  :  American  Statesmen  Series. 


40     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

Virginia,  Gunston  Hall. 

Dear  Sir:  March  as.'. 783. 

I  thank  you  for  your  several  favors  since  I  had  the  pleasure  of 
seeing  you  last,  the  receipt  of  which  I  should  have  acknowledged 
earlier,  but  have  been  a  long  time  disabled,  by  a  very  sore  finger^ 
from  holding  a  pen. 

Since  your  last  of  the  12th  instant,  informing  me  of  the  arrival 
of  Capt.  Barney,  &:c.,  I  have  seen  a  printed  hand  bill  containing 
the  preliminary  Articles  between  Great  Britain  and  the  United 
States,  and  so  far  as  I  am  able  to  judge,  they  are,  upon  the  whole, 
as  favorable  as  America,  in  her  present  situation,  has  a  right 
to  expect.  The  grand  points  are  ceded  to  her,  and  as  for  the 
payment  of  debts  contracted  before  the  war,  it  is  no  more  than 
justice  requires,  nor  do  I  think  it  would  have  been  sound  policy 
in  us  to  have  abrogated  them,  had  it  been  in  our  power.  The 
far-fetched  distinctions  which  have  been  attempted  to  be  shown 
between  this  and  other  wars  would  hardly  have  been  approved, 
as  understood  by  mankind  in  general ;  and  with  what  degree  of 
faith  could  the  merchants  of  other  nations  have  trusted  their 
effects  here,  if  their  private  property  was  in  danger  of  being 
wrested  from  them  and  applied  to  our  own  use,  upon  any 
national  quarrel,  and  upon  arguments  and  principles  in  which  we 
should  be  both  judges  and  parties.  There  can't,  therefore,  be  a 
stronger  proof  of  the  weakness  or  wickedness  of  our  Assembly, 
than  their  late  instructions  to  our  delegates  in  Congress. 

I  once  thought  that  we  ought  to  risk  a  long  war  in  order  to 
bring  the  remaining  British  colonies  into  our  Union,  but  time  and 
reflection  have  altered  my  opinion.  I  have  seen  that  lust  of 
power,  so  natural  to  the  mind  of  man,  prevailing  in  Congress  at  a 
much  earlier  period  than  could  well  have  been  expected.  I  have 
seen  some  of  the  States,  from  partial,  local,  temporary  views, 
conniving  at,  and  fostering  principles  which  would  inevitably  end 
in  their  own  destruction.  I  have  seen  our  legislatures  trampling 
under  foot  the  obligations  of  morality  and  justice,  and  wantonly 
invading  the  sacred  rights  of  their  fellow-citizens.  It  may  not  be 
*  amiss  to  have  some  rival  power  at  their  door,  some  powerful 
motives  to  restrain  them  within  the  bounds  of  moderation.  It 
will  at  least  be  a  comfortable  reflection,  that  if  our  government 
should  grow  intolerable  (which,  judging  of  the  future  from  the 


LETTER    TO  ARTHUR  LEE,  4 1 


past,  is  neither  impossible  nor  improbable)  a  man  would  have 
some  place  of  refuge,  the  means  of  sheltering  himself  from  anar- 
chy, ignorance  and  knavery.  But  I  hope  everything  from  peace. 
I  hope  then  to  see  our  great  national  council,  as  weU  as  our 
different  assemblies,  filled  with  men  of  honest  characters,  and  of 
independent  circumstances  and  principles,  for  until  this  shall  be 
the  case,  our  affairs  can  never  go  well.  I  therefore  hope  that  the 
preliminary  articles  agreed  to  by  our  commissioners  at  Paris,  will 
be  ratified  by  Congress;  that  Capt.  Barney  may  return  with 
them  as  speedily  as  possible  ;  and  that  nothing  on  our  part  may 
be  wanting  to  hasten  so  desirable  an  event,  for  I  presume  his 
passport  from  the  King  of  Great  Britain  is  both  in  and  out 
I  am  anxious  to  hear  the  determination  of  Congress  upon  this 
important  subject,  and  if  there  is  no  injunction  of  secrecy  (and  I 
don't  see  why  there  should)  shall  be  much  obliged  to  you  for  the 
earliest  communication. 

The  refugee  barges  are  lately  returned,  and  again  plundering 
on  the  shores  of  Potomac.  One  of  their  crews  was  lately  pretty 
roughly  handled  by  a  small  party  of  Northumberland  militia. 
They  lost  two  of  their  rascally  officers  and  a  few  men,  upon 
which  they  fled  with  the  greatest  precipitation.  It  is  a  mortifying 
reflection,  and  accords  badly  with  the  ideas  of  sovereignty  and 
independence,  that  the  power  of  two  States  is  not  sufficient  to 
protect  us  from  a  band  of  robbers. 

I  have  lately  received  two  or  three  letters  from  Europe,  via 
Philadelphia,  every  one  of  them  broken  open  and  sealed  up  again 
there,  or  at  some  of  the  intervening  post-offices,  as  almost  all  the 
letters  I  have  had  these  two  years  past  from  Europe  have  been. 
The  post-office  is  a  considerable  tax  upon  the  people ;  under  proper 
regulations  and  in  honest  hands,  it  would  be  a  great  convenience 
and  benefit  to  the  public,  but  by  such  vile  practices  as  these  it  is 
likely  to  become  a  nuisance  to  society.  If  Congress  fails  to  put 
it  under  better  regulations,  or  don't  compel  the  postmaster- 
general  to  be  more  circumspect  in  the  appointment  of  his 
deputies,  the  different  States  will  soon  be  under  the  necessity 
of  taking  it  out  of  their  hands  into  their  own. 

I  sincerely  wish  you  health,  and  am  with  great  esteem  and 
respect, 

Dear  sir,  your  most  obedient  servant, 

G.  Mason. 


42      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

P.  S. — I  beg  leave  to  trouble  you  with  the  three  inclosed  letters 
to  Mr.  Johnson  of  Nantes,  covering  letters  to  my  son  George,  and 
as  they  are  duplicates,  beg  the  favor  of  you  to  forward  them  by 
different  vessels.' 

Captain  Joshua  Barney,  the  celebrated  naval  hero  of  the 
Revolution,  had  sailed  for  France  the  preceding  November 
carrying  despatches  to  Dr.  Franklin,  and  he  had  returned 
now  with  the  welcome  preliminaries  of  peace,  and  also  with 
a  loan  of  money  from  the  French  king. 

The  Virginia  Assembly  met  in  May,  and  was  confronted 
with  the  important  issues  of  the  peace,  as  they  affected  Vir- 
ginia and  her  section,  as  also  with  matters  of  internal  gov- 
ernment, and  the  powers  of  the  Federal  Congress.  George 
Mason  wrote  to  two  of  his  friends  in  the  Assembly,  William 
Cabell  and  Patrick  Henry,  on  the  same  day,  asking  them  for 
their  interest  in  support  of  a  project  of  his  son's,  Thomson 
Mason,  jr.  Colonel  Mason  discusses  public  affairs  in  these 
letters,  and,  as  was  natural,  writing  them  both  at  one  sitting 
probably,  he  uses  the  same  language  frequently  to  his  two 
correspondents.  But  there  is  a  sufficient  variety  in  their 
contents  to  warrant  the  publication  of  both  letters. 

Fairfax  Co.,  Gunston  Hall, 
Dear  Sir  :  May  6th.  1783. 

I  congratulate  you  most  sincerely,  upon  the  establishment  of 
American  liberty  and  independence.  Happiness  and  prosperity 
are  now  within  our  reach  ;  but  to  attain  and  preserve  them  must 
depend  upon  our  own  wisdom  and  virtue,  I  hope  the  Assembly 
will  revise  several  of  our  laws,  and  abolish  all  such  of  them  as  are 
contrary  to  the  fundamental  principles  of  justice.  This  and  a 
strict  adherence  to  the  distinctions  betvireen  right  and  wrong  for 
the  future,  is  absolutely  necessary,  to  restore  that  confidence  and 
reverence  in  the  people  for  the  legislature,  which  a  contrary  con- 
duct has  so  greatly  impaired,  and  without  which  their  laws  must 
ever  remain  little  better  than  a  dead  letter.  Frequent  interference 
with  private  property  and  contracts,  retrospective  laws  destructive 
of  all  public  faith,  as  well  as  confidence  between  man  and  man, 
and  flagrant  violations  of  the  Constitution  must  disgust  the  best 

*  MS.  letter. 


LETTER    TO    WILUAM  CABELL,  43 

and  wisest  part  of  the  community,  and  occasion  a  general  deprav- 
ity of  manners,  bring  the  legislature  into  contempt,  and  finally 
produce  anarchy  and  public  convulsion. 

I  write  to  you  with  the  freedom  and  sincerity  of  a  friend, 
knowing  that  you  detest  such  measures  as  much  as  I  do.  They 
drove  me  out  of  the  Assembly,  with  a  thorough  conviction  that 
it  was  not  in  my  power  to  do  any  manner  of  good.  The  love  of 
my  country  is  not  extinguished  by  it,  and  if  I  recover  tolerable 
health,  and  have  just  cause  to  think  I  can  do  any  essential  public 
service,  I  shall  return  again  into  the  legislature. 

We  are  told  here  that  the  present  Assembly  intend  to  dissolve 
themselves  to  make  way  for  a  general  convention  to  new  model 
the  Constitution.  Will  such  a  measure  be  proper,  without  a 
requisition  from  a  majority  of  the  people  ?  If  it  can  be  done 
without  such  requisition,  may  not  the  caprice  of  future  Assemblies 
repeat  it  from  time  to  time,  until  the  Constitution  shall  have  lost 
all  stability,  and  anarchy  introduced  in  its  stead  ?  Or  at  any  rate, 
will  it  not  be  better  to  defer  it  a  year  or  two,  until  the  present  fer- 
ment (occasioned  by  the  late  sudden  change)  has  subsided,  and 
men's  minds  have  had  time  to  cool  ?  We  are  very  much  alarmed, 
in  this  part  of  the  country,  least  the  Assembly  should  pass  some 
laws  infringing  the  Articles  of  Peace,  and  thereby  involve  us  in  a 
fresh  quarrel  with  Great  Britain,  who  might  make  reprisals  upon 
our  shipping  or  coasts,  without  much  danger  of  offending  the  late 
belligerent  powers  in  Europe,  but  I  trust  that  more  prudent  and 
dispassionate  councils  will  prevail. 

\pne  of  my  sons  and  one  William  Allison  have  lately  erected  a 
snufF  manufactory  in  this  county,  and  have  already  made  a  large 
quantity  of  snuff,  which  they  intend  to  send  soon  into  different 
parts  of  the  country.  Fearing  the  attempts  of  the  British  mer- 
chants [to  send]  such  a  manufacture  here,  they  have  presented  a 
petition  to  the  Assembly,  for  laying  a  duty  upon  snuff  imported 
from  foreign  countries.  The  reasons  for  this  are  fully  stated  in 
their  petition,  which  I  beg  the  favor  of  you  to  examine,  and  if  you 
think  their  request  just  and  reasonable,  I  flatter  myself  they  will 
be  favored  with  your  interest  in  the  General  Assembly. 

I  am  with  much  respect  and  esteem.  Dear  sir. 

Your  most  obedient  servant,     G.  Mason.* 

To  Col.  William  Cabell.  ^ 

I  '*  Virginia  Historicml  Register/*  vol.  iii..  p.  84. 


44      i^FE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

Fairfax  County,  Gunston  Hall, 
Dear  Sir  :  ^»y  ^'  '783. 

Although  it  is  a  long  time  since  I  had  the  honor  of  hearing  from 
you,  I  reflect,  and  ever  shall  reflect,  with  pleasure  on  our  former 
acquaintance  and  the  proofs  I  have  experienced  of  your  esteem 
and  friendship.  I  have  enjoyed  but  indifferent  health  since  I 
retired  from  public  business :  should  I  recover  a  better  state  of 
health,  and  have  just  cause  to  think  I  can  render  any  essential 
public  service,  I  shall  return  again  to  the  Assembly. 

I  congratulate  you  most  sincerely  on  the  accomplishment  of 
what  I  know  was  the  warmest  wish  of  your  heart,  the  establish- 
ment of  American  independence  and  the  liberty  of  our  country. 
We  are  now  to  rank  among  the  nations  of  the  world,  but  whether 
our  independence  shall  prove  a  blessing  or  a  curse,  must  depend 
on  our  own  wisdom  or  folly,  virtue  or  wickedness  ;  judging  of  the 
future  by  the  past,  the  prospect  is  not  promising.  /  Justice  and 
virtue  are  the  vital  principles  of  republican  government ;  but 
among  us  a  depravity  of  manners  and  morals  prevails  to  the 
destruction  of  all  confidence  between  man  and  man.  It  greatly 
behooves  the  Assembly  to  revise  several  of  our  laws  ;  to  abolish 
all  such  as  are  contrary  to  the  fundamental  principles  of  justice, 
and  by  a  strict  adherence  to  the  distinctioi^s  between  right  and 
wrong  for  the  future  to  restore  that  confidence  and  reverence  in 
the  people  for  the  legislature  which  has  been  so  greatly  impaired 
by  a  contrary  conduct,  and  without  which  our  laws  can  never  be 
much  more  than  a  dead  letter.  It  is  in  your  power,  my  dear  sir, 
to  do  more  good  and  prevent  more  mischief  than  any  man  in  this 
State  ;  and  I  doubt  not  that  you  will  exert  the  great  talents  with 
which  God  has  blessed  you  in  promoting  the  public  happiness  and 
prosperity.  We  are  told  that  the  present  Assembly  intend  to  dis- 
solve themselves,  in  order  to  make  way  for  a  general  convention 
to  new-model  the  constitution  of  government.  Will  such  a 
measure  be  proper  without  a  requisition  of  the  people  ?  If  it  can 
be  done  without  such  requisition,  the  caprice  of  future  Assemblies 
may  repeat  it  from  time  to  time  until  the  stability  of  the  constitu- 
tion is  totally  destroyed  and  anarchy  introduced  in  its  stead.  Or 
at  any  rate  will  it  not  be  better  to  defer  it  a  year  or  two  until  the 
present  ferment  (occasioned  by  the  late  sudden  change)  has  sub- 
sided and  men's  minds  have  had  time  to  cool  ? 


LETTER   TO  PATRICK  HENRY.  45 

The  people  in  this  part  of  the  country  are  made  very  uneasy  by 
the  reports  we  have  from  below,  that  the  Assembly  will  make 
some  laws  or  resolutions  respecting  British  debts  which  may 
infringe  the  articles  of  the  peace,  under  the  mistaken  idea  that 
Great  Britain  will  not  risk  a  renewal  of  the  war  on  account  of 
such  an  infraction  of  the  treaty.  We  see  by  the  late  public  papers 
that  the  terms  of  peace  with  America  are  so  strongly  censured  in 
both  houses  of  Parliament,  that  it  has  occasioned  or  will  occasion 
a  total  change  in  the  ministry.  A  new  ministry  averse  to  the 
treaty,  or  even  the  ministry  who  concluded  it,  might  resent  or 
avenge  any  infraction  of  its  provisions  in  any  particular  State,  by 
reprisals  upon  the  ships  or  coasts  of  such  State;  or  by  sending 
two  or  three  frigates  to  intercept  their  trade,  without  danger  of 
involving  themselves  in  a  new  war ;  for  the  power  of  war  and 
peace  and  of  making  treaties  being  in  Congress  and  not  in  the 
separate  States,  any  such  act  would  be  considered  as  an  unwar- 
rantable assumption  of  power  in  the  State  adopting  it ;  and  we 
have  no  reason  to  expect  that  either  the  late  belligerent  powers  in 
Europe,  or  even  the  American  States  in  general,  would  make  a 
common  cause  of  it.  It  is  easy  to  foresee  that,  in  such  an  event, 
our  situation  would  be  neither  safe  nor  honorable.  Had  it  been 
in  the  power  of  the  American  commissioners  (which  it  certainly 
was  not)  to  have  abolished  the  British  debts  here,  it  would  have 
been  but  short-sighted  policy  to  have  done  so.  The  far-fetched 
arguments  which  have  been  used  to  show  the  distinction  between 
this  and  other  wars,  would  not  have  been  approved  or  compre- 
hended, by  the  bulk  of  mankind  ;  and  with  what  degree  of  confi- 
dence would  foreign  merchants  have  ventured  their  effects  here, 
if  upon  any  national  quarrel  they  were  liable  to  confiscation? 
I  could  have  wished,  indeed,  that  some  reasonable  time  had  been 
allowed  for  the  payment  of  the  British  debts,  and  that  the  interest 
on  them  had  been  relinquished.  As  to  the  first,  the  desire  of  the 
British  merchants  to  reinstate  themselves  in  their  trade  here  will 
probably  prevent  their  pressing  their  debtors,  and  as  to  the  last, 
their  bond-debts  only  will  carry  interest.  It  is  notorious,  that  the 
custom  of  giving  interest  upon  common  accounts  was  introduced 
by  the  partiality  of  the  merchants  of  whom  the  jurors  at  the 
general  court  were  chiefly  composed  for  several  years  before  the 
late  Revolution.     Under  our  present  circumstances,  I  think  the 


46     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON 

accounts  of  the  British  creditors  may  be  safely  trusted  to  the 
Virginia  juries  without  any  interposition  of  the  legislature.  In 
conversation  upon  this  subject  we  hear  sometimes  a  very  absurd 
question :  ''  If  we  are  now  to  pay  the  debts  due  to  British  mer- 
chants, what  have  we  been  fighting  for  all  this  while  ?  "  Surely 
not  to  avoid  our  just  debts  or  to  cheat  our  creditors ;  but  to 
rescue  our  country  from  the  oppression  and  tyranny  of  the  British 
government,  and  to  secure  the  rights  and  liberties  of  ourselves  and 
of  our  posterity,  which  we  have  happily  accomplished.  The  min- 
istry in  Great  Britain  and  the  Tories  here  have  indeed  constantly 
accused  us  of  engaging  in  the  war  to  avoid  the  payment  of  our 
just  debts ;  but  every  honest  man  has  denied  so  injurious  a  charge 
with  indignation.  Upon  the  whole  we  have  certainly  obtained 
better  terms  of  peace  than  America  had  cause  to  expect ;  all  the 
great  points  are  ceded  to  us,  and  I  cannot  but  think  it  would  be 
highly  dangerous  and  imprudent  to  risk  a  breach  of  it. 

The  people  here  too  are  greatly  alarmed  at  a  prevailing  notion, 
that  those  men  who  have  paid  the  British  debts  into  the  Treasury 
in  depreciated  paper  money,  instead  of  making  up  the  real  value 
to  their  creditors,  will  now  attempt  to  throw  the  difference  upon 
the  shoulders  of  the  public  and  raise  it  by  taxes  upon  the  people. 
I  should  hope  that  such  an  iniquitous  scheme  will  be  rejected 
with  the  contempt  it  deserves.  If  it  is  adopted  it  will  probably 
cause  some  violent  convulsion  ;  the  people  being  determined,  in 
many  parts  of  the  country,  to  form  associations  against  it,  and  to 
resist  the  payment  of  any  taxes  imposed  on  them  for  discharging 
the  private  debts  of  individuals. 

I  hope  the  Assembly  will,  as  soon  as  they  meet,  postpone  the 
collection  of  taxes  (which  by  an  act  of  last  session  were  to  be 
paid  in  this  month)  until  August  or  September ;  the  war  being 
ended,  the  delay  will  occasion  no  material  inconvenience  to  the 
public,  and  though  it  will  not  diminish  the  revenue  a  shilling,  it 
will  lessen  the  taxes  upon  the  people  100  fl  by  enabling  them 
to  pay  with  one  half  the  tobacco  or  other  produce  which  it 
would  at  this  time  require.  If  the  people  are  compelled  to  pay 
immediately,  the  merchants  taking  advantage  of  their  necessity 
^  will  keep  down  the  price  of  tobacco  in  a  manner  that  may  affect 
the  market  through  the  whole  season ;  whereas  if  the  collection 
of  taxes  be  postponed,  the  people  will  be  under  no  necessity  of 


A   SNUFF  FACTORY  IN  FAIRFAX  COUNTY.  47 

selling  until  the  arrival  of  a  great  many  ships  has  increased  the 
demand,  and  raised  the  price  of  country  produce.  In  short,  the 
immediate  collection  of  the  taxes  will,  in  a  great  measure,  deprive 
the  people  of  the  benefits  of  peace  this  year. 

One  of  my  sons  and  one  William  Allison  (who  have  in  partner- 
ship erected  a  snuff  manufactory  in  this  county)  have  presented 
a  petition  to  the  Assembly  for  laying  a  duty  upon  snuff  imported 
from  foreign  countries ;  the  reasons  in  support  of  it  being  fully 
stated  in  their  petition,  I  will  not  trouble  you  with  a  recapitulation, 
but  beg  the  favor  of  you  to  examine  the  petition,  and  if  you  think 
it  just  and  reasonable  I  flatter  myself  it  will  have  your  support 
and  patronage.  My  son  George  (who  is  still  in  Europe)  desires 
me  to  present  his  most  respectful  compliments  to  you,  with  his 
thanks  for  the  testimonial  you  were  so  kind  as  to  give  him  under 
the  seal  of  the  commonwealth ;  it  has  been  of  great  service  in 
recommending  him  to  the  notice  of  many  gentlemen  of  rank  and 
fortune.  I  have  lately  received  a  letter  from  him  dated  Paris  the 
2oth  February,  in  which  he  gives  very  strong  hints  of  great 
duplicity  in  some  articles  of  European  politics,  such  as,  he  says, 
he  does  not  care  to  venture  upon  paper  that  is  to  cross  the 
Atlantic,  but  shall  reserve  the  communication  until  he  arrives  in 
America,  which  he  expects  will  be  about  the  middle  of  July  ;  and 
he  concludes  with  the  following  expression :  "  I  wish  America 
would  put  her  trust  only  in  God  and  herself,  and  have  as  little  to 
do  with  the  politics  of  Europe  as  possible."  He  tells  me  our  old 
friend  Mazzey  [Mazzei  ?]  was  then  in  Paris  and  preparing  to 
return  to  America. 

I  have  reason  to  apologise  for  this  long  letter,  but  I  hope  your 

candor  wiU  excuse  it  and  ascribe  it  to  its  true  cause,  the  unfeigned 

esteem  and  regard  with  which  I  am,  dear  sir, 

Your  affectionate  and  obedient  servant, 

G.  Mason. 
To  Hon.  Patrick  Henry.* 

After  seven  years  of  war  the  land  was  blessed  with  peace. 
After  the  long  struggle  to  secure  the  autonomy  they  had 
established,  the  independence  of  the  American  States  was 
acknowledged  by  all  the  world.     Small  wonder  that  men's 

1  MS.  Letter. 


48     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON, 

minds  were  in  a  "  ferment "  through  the  "  late  sudden 
change."  This  was  no  time  for  remodelling  the  State  con- 
stitution George  Mason  felt.  What  Virginia's  duties  were, 
and  what  the  crisis  demanded  from  her  representatives  in 
the  Assembly,  Colonel  Mason  states  clearly  and  forcibly  in 
"The  Address  and  Instructions  of  their  Constituents"  to 
Alexander  Henderson  and  Charles  Broadwater,  the  delegates 
from  Fairfax  County  at  this  time.  Though  no  names  are 
signed  to  this  paper  there  can  be  no  doubt,  to  those  who  are 
familiar  with  his  style  and  his  opinions,  that  George  Mason 
was  the  writer  of  it ;  and  as  the  leading  citizen  of  his  county, 
and  on  so  many  previous  occasions  its  spokesman,  the  pre- 
sumption is  most  natural  that  the  like  office  was  assigned  to 
him  at  this  time. 

••  May  yxh,  1783. 

'^  Gentlemen  : 

''  We  have  committed  to  you  the  greatest  and  most  sacred  trust, 
which  a  free  people  can  repose  in  any  of  their  fellow-citizens ; 
the  care  of  our  dearest  and  most  important  interests,  the  protec- 
tion of  our  rights  and  liberty,  and  the  power  of  making,  on  our 
behalf,  those  laws  by  which  we  are  to  be  governed,  and  this  com- 
I  monwealth  preserved  in  safety  and  prosperity.    And  although  we 

\  confide  thoroughly  in  your  integrity  and  attachment  to  the  public 

good,  yet  we  judge  it  expedient,  at  this  critical  and  important 
season,  to  communicate  to  you  our  sentiments,  and  to  exercise  our 
undoubted  right  of  instructing  you,  as  our  immediate  Representa- 
!  tives  in  the  Legislature. 

''  And  first,  Gentlemen,  we  desire  and  expressly  instruct  you,  that 
"  you  give  not  your  assent  to,  and  on  the  contrary,  that  you  oppose, 
to  the  utmost  of  your  power,  the  smallest  infraction  of  the  late 
Treaty  of  Peace,  either  with  respect  to  the  payment  of  debts,  or 
y  \  in  any  other  matter  whatsoever,  whereby  the  public  faith,  sol- 
emnly pledged  by  the  American  Commissioners  duly  authorized, 
may  be  Violated,  and  this  country  again  involved  in  the  calamities 

'.^ ftf  war,  or  the  dahger  of  reprisals. 

''We  also  direct  and  instruct  you,  that  you  use  your  utmost 
endeavors  to  enact  a  law  for  repayment  of  the  principal  and 
interest  to  each  and  every  individual,  who  hath  paid  paper  money 


1 


INSTRUCTIONS  TO  DELEGA  TES  IN  THE  ASSEMBL  V.     49 

into  the  public  treasury,  in  discharge  of  debts  due  to  British 
creditors,  according  to  its  real  value  in  specie,  to  be  adjusted  by 
the  legal  scale  of  depreciation,  at  the  time  each  sum  was  respect- 
ively placed  in  the  Treasury  ;  and  that  such  debts,  as  well  as  all 
other  private  debts  and  contracts,  be  thereafter  left  to  the  common 
course  of  the  laws  of  the  land.  And  in  case  of  any  division  of  the 
House,  upon  either  of  these  subjects,  or  upon  any  other  important 
matter,  whereby  the  rights  of  the  people,  and  the  safety  of  the 
Commonwealth  may  be  endangered,  the  maxims  of  justice  contra- 
vened, or  the  fundamental  principles  of  the  Constitution  violated  ; 
we  desire  and  instruct  you  to  call  for  and  cause  to  be  published, 
the  yeas  and  nays  upon  the  state  of  the  question,  that  so  the 
people  may,  at  least,  be  enabled  to  distinguish  their  country's  foes 
from  its  friends,  and  hereafter  to  separate  the  far^s  from  the  corn, 

"  We  desire  and  instruct  you^  that  you  give  not  your  assent  to, 
and  that  you  firmly  oppose,  granting  any  exclusive  privileges  or 
advantages  in  our  trade,  to  any  particular  kingdom  or  nation,  other 
than  what  may  be  stipulated  in  the  Commercial  Treaties  con- 
cluded by  the  authority  of  Congress,  it  being  the  true  and  per- 
manent interest  of  America  to  admit  the  trade  of  all  nations,  upon 
equal  terms,  without  preference  to  any,  further  than  the  goodness 
and  cheapness  of  their  commodities  may  entitle  them  to. 

''  We  desire  and  instruct  you  that  you  give  not  your  assent  to,  and 
that  you  oppose,  any  further  occlusion  of  the  Courts  of  Justice  ; 
as  withholding  the  due  and  regular  administration  of  justice 
in  any  country,  must  loosen  the  bonds  of  society,  corrupt  the 
morals  of  the  people,  and  tend  to  produce  anarchy  and  public 
confusion. 

**  We  desire  and  instruct  you  to  oppose  all  future  emissions  of 
paper  money  ;  all  interference  of  the  Legislature  in  private  con- 
tracts, they  being  properly  cognizable  in  the  judiciary  departments 
of  the  State  ;  all  ex  post  facto  laws,  except  such  only  as  are  war- 
ranted by  the  greatest  emergencies,  and  the  plain  principles  of 
justice  ;  and  that  you  endeavour  to  procure  a  revisal  or  repeal  of 
all  laws,  which  may  have  been  heretofore  made,  contrary  to  such 
principles. 

''  We  desire  and  instruct  you  to  oppose  any  further  delay  in  the 

collection  of  this  year's  taxes  than  will  be  absolutely  necessary  to 

give  the  people  the  benefit  of  this  summer's  market,  for  their  com- 
Vol.  II.— 4 


50     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 


\ 


modities  now  on  hand  ;  all  such  delays  being  highly  injurious  to 
public  credit 

"  We  desire  and  instruct  you  to  promote  a  strict  enquiry  into  the 
expenditure  of  public  money,  and  the  bringing  to  speedy  account 
and  punishment  all  public  delinquents  and  defaulters. 

''  We  desire  and  instruct  you  to  endeavour  to  procure  ample  jus- 
tice to  the  officers  and  soldiers  of  the  American  army ;  who  though 
constantly  surrounded  with  uncommon  distress  and  difficulties^ 
have  so  bravely  defended  the  rights  and  liberties  of  their  country. 

"  We  desire  and  instruct  you  that  you  assent  not  to,  and  that  you 
oppose  repealing  the  law  for  preventing  extensive  credits  upon  open 
accounts  ;  and  also  that  you  assent  not  to,  but  oppose  the  imposi- 
tion of  any  greater  duty  upon  imported  iron  or  cordage  than  shall 
be  imposed  upon  other  imported  goods,  for  the  reasons  respectively 
given  in  our  petitions  to  the  Assembly  upon  these  subjects. 

"  We  desire  and  instruct  you  strenuously  to  oppose  all  encroach- 
ments of  the  American  Congress  upon  the  sovereignty  and  juris- 
diction of  the  separate  States ;  and  every  assumption  of  power, 
not  expressly  vested  in  them,  by  the  Articles  of  Confederation. 
If  experience  shall  prove  that  further  powers  are  necessary  and 
safe,  they  can  be  granted  only  by  additional  articles  to  the  Con- 
federation, duly  acceded  to  by  all  the  States ;  for  if  Congress, 
upon  the  plea  of  necessity,  or  upon  any  pretence  whatever,  can 
arrogate  powers  not  warranted  by  the  Articles  of  Confederation, 
in  one  instance,  they  may  in  another,  or  in  an  hundred  ;  every 
repetition  will  be  strengthened  and  confirmed  by  precedents. 

'^  And  in  particular  we  desire  and  instruct  you  to  oppose  any 
attempts  which  may  be  made  by  Congress  to  obtain  a  perpetual 
revenue,  or  the  appointment  of  revenue  officers.  Were  these 
powers  superadded  to  those  they  already  possess,  the  Articles  of 
Confederation,  and  the  Constitutions  of  Government  in  the 
different  States  would  prove  mere  parchment  bulwarks  to 
American  liberty. 

''  We  like  not  the  language  of  the  late  address  from  Congress 
to  the  different  States,  and  of  the  report  of  their  committee  upon 
the  subject  of  revenue,  published  in  the  same  pamphlet.  If 
they  are  carefully  and  impartially  examined,  they  will  be  found 
to  exhibit  strong  proofs  of  lust  of  power :  They  contain  the  same 
kind  of  arguments  which  were  formerly  used  in  the  business  of 


i 


CONGRESS  NO  POIVER    TO  LEVY   TAXES. 


51 


ship  money,,  and  to  Justify  the  arbitrary  measures  of  the  race  of 
Stuarts  in  England.  And  the  present  king  and  council  of  Great 
Britain  might  not  improperly  adopt  great  part  of  them,  to  prove 
the  expediency  of  levying  money  without  consent  of  Parliament. 
After  having  reluctantly  given  up  part  of  what  they  found 
they  could  not  maintain,  they  still  insist  that  the  several  States 
shall  invest  the  United  States  in  Congress  assembled  with  a  power  to 
levy^  for  the  use  of  the  United  States,  the  following  duties,  &c.,  and 
that  the  revenue  officers  shall  be  amenable  to  Congress.  The  very 
style  is  alarming.  The  proposed  duties  may  be  proper,  but  the 
separate  States  only  can  safely  have  the  power  of  levying  taxes. 
Congress  should  not  have  even  the  appearance  of  such  a  power. 
Forms  generally  imply  substance,  and  such  a  precedent  may  be 
applied  to  dangerous  purposes  hereafter.  When  the  same  man,  or 
set  of  men,  holds  both  the  sword  and  the  purse,  there  is  an  end  of 
liberty.  As  little  are  we  satisfied  with  the  resolution  of  Congress 
of  the  loth  of  October,  1780,  lately  renewed,  engaging  that  the 
unappropriated  lands  '  that  may  be  ceded  or  relinquished  to  the 
United  States  by  any  particular  States,  shall  be  disposed  of  for  the 
common  benefit  of  the  United  States.'  Who  is  to  judge  of  the 
quality  and  legality  of  pretended  appropriations  ?  And  will  this 
vague  resolution  be  a  sufficient  bar  to  Congress  against  confirming 
the  claims  under  Indian  purchases,  or  pretended  grants  from  the 
Crown  of  Great  Britain,  in  which  many  of  their  own  members  are 
interested  as  partners,  and  by  which  great  part  of  the  ceded  lands 
may  be  converted  to  private,  instead  of  public  purposes?  The 
intrigues  of  the  great  land  companies,  and  the  methods  by  which 
they  have  strengthened  their  interest  are  no  secret  to  the  public. 
We  are  also  at  a  loss  to  know  whence  Congress  derives  the  powers 
of  demanding  cessions  of  lands  and  of  erecting  new  States  before 
such  powers  have  been  granted  them  by  their  constituents. 

''  And  finally  we  recommend  it  to  you  (for  in  this  we  will  not 
presume  to  give  positive  instructions)  to  endeavour  to  obtain  an 
instruction  from  the  General  Assembly  to  the  Virginia  delegates  in 
Congress,  against  sending  ambassadors  to  the  courts  of  Europe ; 
it  being  an  expence  which  (in  our  present  circumstances)  these 
United  States  are  unable  to  support  Such  appointments  can 
hardly  fail  of  producing  dangerous  combinations,  factions,  and 
cabals,  in  the  great  council  of  America.      And  from  the  great 


!» 


52      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON 

distance  and  the  difficulty  of  knowing  and  examining  their  con- 
ducty  there  is  danger,  too,  that  some  of  the  persons  so  sent,  may 
be  corrupted  and  pensioned  by  the  courts  where  they  reside.  We 
are  of  opinion,  that  consuls  to  superintend  our  trade  (at  less  than  a 
^  tenth  part  of  the  charge  of  ambassadors)  will  be  sufficient  to 
answer  every  good  purpose.  And  nature  having  separated  us,  by 
an  immense  ocean,  from  the  European  nations,  the  less  we  have  to 
do  with  their  quarrels  or  politics,  the  better.  Having  thus,  Gentle- 
men, given  you  our  opinions  and  instructions,  upon  such  subjects 
as  we  deem  at  this  time  most  important,  we  remain,  with  senti- 
ments of  great  respect  and  esteem,  your  friends  and  fellow- 
citizens."  * 

Thonnson  Mason  was  in  the  Assembly  during  this  session, 
and  his  views  upon  public  affairs  were  given  to  his  con- 
stituents in  the  following  letter : 

To  the  Freeholders  of  Stafford  County  : 

Richmond,  June  loth,  1783. 
Gentlemen  : 

I  return  you  my  sincere  thanks  for  the  confidence  you  have 

placed  in  me,  in  electing  me  a  delegate  to  represent  you  in  the 

General  Assembly  ;  and  I  shall  now,  in  return,  lay  before  you  the 

views  and  motives  which  induced  me  to  offer  myself  a  candidate  at 

your  late  election.     It  is  needless  to  assert,  that  no  private  interest 

of  my  own  actuated  me,  because  from  your  acquaintance  with  me 

from  my  youth,  you  know  it  did  not     The  fears  of  some  of  you, 

that  I  would  endeavour  to  prevent  the  Treaty  of  Peace  from 

being  ratified,  or  the  payment  of  British  debts,  were  groundless  ; 

no  man  was  more  desirous  of  a  peace,  or  entertained  a  more  fixed 

regard  for  the  strict  rules  of  justice  than  myself,  and  my  disposition 

is  not  vindictive ;  but  I  think  the  safety  of  my  country  depends 

upon  excluding  from  the  rights  of  citizenship  those  who  joined  the 

enemy  and  not  only  deserted  us  in  the  hour  of  distress,  but  by 

their  arms  and  false  councils  assisted  our  enemies  in  prolonging 

the  war  against  us.     And  those  who  remained  among  us,  and 

avowed  principles  incompatible  with  American  liberty,  I  think  also 

»  Th€  Virginia  GautU,  June  7,  1783. 


% 


THOMSON  MASON   TO  HIS  CONSTITUENTS.  53 

ought  never  to  be  trusted  with  any  office,  civil  or  military,  nor 
even  to  be  allowed  to  vote  for  any  man  who  is  to  guide  our  public 
councils.  I  wished  also  to  suspend  all  executions  on  judgments 
obtained  for  debts  contracted  before  the  war,  so  as  to  issue  for 
one  fourth  or  fifth  part  of  the  debt  annually,  till  the  whole  was 
discharged,  in  order  to  place  the  debtor  as  near  as  we  could  in  the 
same  flourishing  situation  that  he  was  when  that  debt  was  con- 
tracted ;  for  I  really  dreaded,  that  if  Tory  and  refugee  creditors 
were  suffered  to  return  and  harass  their  debtors  with  that  rapacious 
and  vindictive  spirit  which  we  have  reason  to  suppose  they  will, 
that  those  citizens  who  had  been  most  active  in  defence  of  the 
liberties  of  their  country  would  be  the  devoted  victims  of  their  fury, 
and  in  the  present  scarcity  of  money,  great  part  of  the  property  of 
this  country  would  centre  in  the  hands  of  the  avowed  enemies  to 
liberty ;  and  as  power  is  the  constant,  the  necessary  attendant  on 
property,  that  after  all  the  struggles  of  the  virtuous,  the  wicked 
would  at  last  prevail,  and  introduce  a  more  slavish  dependence 
upon  Britain  than  that  from  which  we  have  just  emerged. 

I  wished  also  to  prevent  the  money  paid  into  the  Treasury, 
either  for  British  debts  or  loans,  from  being  accounted  for  on  any 
other  terms,  than  at  the  real  depreciation  at  the  time  it  was  paid 
in.  I  wished  to  introduce  some  regular  system  into  our  revenue 
laws,  so  as  to  pass  several  distinct  laws  establishing  separate  sub- 
stantial funds ;  first  for  the  support  of  our  civil  government, 
secondly,  for  the  annual  payment  of  the  interest  of  our  foreign 
debt,  thirdly,  for  the  payment  of  the  annual  interest  of  the  debt 
due  to  the  army,  and  fourthly,  for  that  due  to  our  own  citizens  ; 
that  these  funds  should  be  most  sacredly  applied  to  the  separate 
purpose  for  which  each  was  designed,  and  the  overplus  go  towards 
sinking  the  principal  of  each  ;  and  I  was  not  without  hopes  that 
the  increase  of  our  inhabitants,  commerce,  and  wealth  would  be 
so  rapidly  great,  that  the  excess  of  each  fund  would  pay  off  that 
principal  in  less  than  twelve  years. 

I  wished  to  encourage  the  culture  of  hemp,  by  giving  a  bounty 
to  the  makers  of  it,  and  laying  such  a  duty  on  imported  cordage 
as  would  pay  that  bounty,  that  we  might  not  be  altogether  de- 
pendent upon  foreigners  for  the  means  of  fitting  out  vessels,  either 
for  necessary  defence  or  the  extension  of  our  commerce. 

And  I  wished  to  place  our  bay  and  river  trade,  and  above  all 


54     ^/^^  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON 

our  fisheries,  on  such  a  foundation,  as  to  render  them  useful 
nurseries  of  free  seamen  ;  on  the  increase  of  which  our  naval 
strength  and  the  extension  of  our  commerce  so  materially 
depend. 

Whether  I  shall  succeed  in  all  or  any  of  these  views,  I  shall  be 
better  able  to  inform  you  when  I  return  ;  in  the  meantime  think 
me  not  guilty  of  inconsistency,  if  you  find  by  the  journals  that  I 
should  often  vote  against  measures  which  by  them  seem  to  be 
proposed  by  myself;  for  where  there  are  a  large  number  to 
deliberate  upon  any  measure,  in  which  a  majority  are  to  agree, 
the  measure  is  often  so  altered  as  to  make  it  exceedingly  different 
from  what  it  was  first  intended  to  be. 

I  am,  gentlemen,  with  the  highest  sentiments  of  gratitude  and 
esteem,  your  sincerely  affectionate, 

Thomson  Mason.' 

The  great  question  before  the  Assembly,  in  the  estimation 
of  Madison,  Jefferson,  and  Joseph  Jones  was  the  report  on 
the  federal  impost.  The  duty  law  passed  at  a  previous  ses- 
sion had  been  repealed,  it  was  said  through  the  agency  of 
the  Lees,  Richard  Henry,  and  Arthur,  but  it  was  now  hoped 
that  it  would  be  re-enacted.  Jefferson  wrote  to  Madison, 
on  the  3d  of  May,  giving  a  somewhat  cynical  sketch  of  the 
House,  and  the  attitude  of  its  prominent  members  in  regard 
to  the  articles  proposed  by  Madison  covering  this  subject. 
The  Lees  were  against  them  :  "  Henry,  as  usual,  is  involved 
in  mystery " ;  Thomson  Mason  "  is  a  meteor  whose  path 
cannot  be  calculated.  All  the  powers  of  his  mind  seem  at 
present  to  be  concentrated  in  one  single  object — the  pro- 
ducing a  convention  to  new-model  the  State  constitution. 
This  is  a  subject  much  agitated,  and  seems  the  only  one  they 
will  have  to  amuse  themselves  with  till  they  shall  receive 
your  propositions."  *  Joseph  Jones  hurried  from  his  seat  in 
Congress  to  attend  the  Assembly,  and  he  wrote  regularly  to 
Madison  while  in  Richmond  to  report  the  progress  of  affairs.  ^ 
Patrick  Henry  and  Richard  Henry  Lee  he  describes  as  the 

'  Virginia  Ganettt,  June  14,  1783. 

'  Bancroft's  '*  History  of  the  Constitution/'  vol.  i.,  Appendix,  p.  310, 


JEFFERSON  AND  JOSEPH  JONES.  55 

"  two  great  commanders  "  in  the  House,  but  he  intimates 
that  there  is  too  much  said  and  too  little  done.  On  the  21st 
of  June  he  wrote  : 

"  We  are  now  as  usual  putting  to  sleep  many  of  the  bills  that 
have  employed  our  time  and  attention  for  great  part  of  this  ses- 
sion. Among  them  two,  one  for  the  benefit  of  debtors,  the  other 
for  regulating  the  proceedings  in  the  county  courts.  These  were 
thought  to  have  some  connection  and  ought  to  rest  together.  Mr. 
Mason  introduced  and  patronized  the  debtors'  bill.  I  was  not  in 
the  House  when  it  was  read,  but  understand  it  allowed  all 
creditors  to  obtain  judgment,  but  suspended  execution,  rather 
permitted  it  for  a  fifth  of  the  debt  annually,  for  five  years, 
comprehending  as  well  foreign  as  domestic  credits.  I  came 
into  the  House  during  the  debate  and  from  the  observations  of 
R.  H.  L  [ee]  and  those  who  opposed  the  bill  its  principle  was 
severely  reprobated.  Mr.  Mason  and  C.  M.  T.  [Charles  Minn 
Thruston]  warmly  supported  it  and  pronounced  it  indispensably 
necessary  to  preserve  the  people  from  ruin  and  the  country  inde- 
pendent. The  disposition  of  the  members,  however,  was  so 
prevalent  for  lopping  off  all  business  not  really  necessary  that  the 
latter  gentlemen  were  obliged  to  submit  to  its  being  referred  to 
the  next  session.  This  bill,  at  least  so  far  as  respected  British 
creditors,  would  have  had  more  advocates  but  for  the  late  period 
at  which  it  was  introduced,  and  because  there  already  existed  and 
will  continue  in  force  until  the  ist  of  December  a  law  that  pro- 
hibits suits  for  or  on  account  of  British  subjects."  ' 

A  letter  from  Thomson  Mason  to  John  Francis  Mercer, 
half-brother  to  George  and  James  Mercer,  and  at  this  time 
in  the  Continental  Congress,  gives  a  graphic  account  of 
Virginia  politics,  and  brings  before  us  in  lively  colors  the 
aspect  of  the  Assembly  which  was  just  about  to  close  its 
session. 

My  dear  Sir  :  Richmond,  22d  June,  1783. 

I  must  entreat  your  forgiveness  in  having  so  long  neglected  to 
answer  your  very  obliging  favor  of  April,  but  have  really  been  so 
much  engaged  in  the  duties  of  my  profession,  and  the  business  of 

*  *'  letters  of  Joseph  Jones,"  p.  120. 


$6     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON 

the  public,  that  I  have  scarce  had  a  moment's  leisure.  Add  to 
this  the  very  infirm  state  of  my  health,  and  at  times  the  total  dis- 
ability of  my  better  hand,  and  you  will  be  convinced  that  my 
silence  proceeded  not  from  any  disrespect,  for  believe  me,  sir,  I 
esteem  you  as  I  ou^t 

I  thank  you  most  sincerely  for  the  very  interesting  intelligence 
you  gave  me,  of  which  I  endeavoured  to  avail  myself  to  promote 
the  public  good,  thou^  I  am  sorry  to  say  to  little  purpose,  as  the 
Shelbome  faction,  as  I  have  christened  them,  are  yet  very  power- 
ful thou^  they  lose  ground. 

I  never  saw  the  provisional  Treaty  of  Peace  till  I  reached  Gar* 
rard's,  in  my  way  to  this  place,  and  did  not  determine  upon  the 
part  I  afterwards  took  on  that  occasion,  till  I  knew  whether  I 
could  prevail  on  my  son  who  was  here  to  declare  himself  for  Lou- 
don, and  till  I  had  consulted  your  brother  whether  it  might  not 
interfere  with  your  election.  The  result  of  these  conferences 
ended  in  both  my  son  and  myself  writing  up  to  our  respective 
counties,  that  we  would  serve  if  they  chose  us.  In  my  letter  ta 
my  son  John  which  I  desired  him  to  make  public,  I  expressed  my 
wishes  that  all  my  friends  would  also  be  yours,  and  was  not  with- 
out hopes  that  we  should  both  have  been  elected,  and  we  certainly 
should  have  been  so,  but  a  particular  party,  having  made  several 
unsuccessful  attempts  to  raise  you  up  an  opponent,  had  after  I 
left  the  county,  prevailed  on  young  Col.  Garrard  to  set  up  in 
professed  opposition  to  you,  in  partnership  with  Col.  Carter.  He 
rode  from  house  to  house  in  the  county,  and  supported  by  CoL 
Carter  prevailed  upon  many  to  promise  him,  even  before  my  in* 
tentions  were  known.  Notwithstanding  this,  if  our  election  had 
been  managed  properly  you  would  have  run  CoL  Carter  hard  ; 
but  instead  of  our  staunch  friends  (which  actually  formed  a 
majority  of  those  present)  pushing  us  both  from  the  beginning,, 
which  they  ought  to  have  done,  as  both  the  other  candidates  were 
our  professed  enemies,  they  only  pushed  in  such  who  were  only 
for  one  of  us,  and  they  giving  one  vote,  some  to  Garrard  and  some 
to  Carter,  added  to  those  who  were  their  staunch  friends,  run 
those  gentlemen  so  far  ahead  that  our  friends  began  to  be  appre- 
hensive we  should  both  be  dropped,  and  Garrard  having  declared 
that  he  would  resign  his  pretensions  if  you  were  withdrawn,  out- 
witted your  friends  so  far  as  to  withdraw  you,  expecting  by  sa 


THOMSON  MASON  TO  JOHN  FRANCIS  MERCER.        57 

doing  that  I  should  then  be  certainly  elected,  as  Garrard  would 
then  withdraw.  But  here  they  found  themselves  deceived  ;  Gar- 
rard and  Carter  still  continued  to  push  their  elections,  and  my 
friends  threw  their  votes  upon  Carter  till  they  got  me  about  a 
dozen  votes  ahead  of  Garrard,  who  finding  he  had  not  another 
vote  resigned,  and  upwards  of  thirty  of  my  friends  then  thought 
it  unnecessary  to  vote  at  all,  not  duly  considering  that  this  might 
possibly  have  overturned  my  election  in  case  of  a  controversy. 
Your  old  friend  CoL  Mountjoy  quarrelled  with  his  brother-in-law 
on  account  of  his  conduct  in  setting  up  in  opposition  to  you. 
Thus  I  have  given  you  a  particular  account  of  the  election  as 
stated  to  me,  for  I  was  not  there  ;  if  I  had  [been]  I  think  you 
would  have  run  my  colleague  hard  ;  if  not  have  turned  him  out, 
though  many  untruths,  and  the  inconvenience  of  serving  in  Con- 
gress and  Assembly,  were  I  am  told  urged  much  to  your  prejudice. 

The  Assembly  have  passed  an  act  to  render  members  of  Con- 
gress ineligible  in  future  for  the  Assembly.  I  fancy  some  maneu- 
vering was  intended  to  your  prejudice  in  the  ballot  for  members  of 
Congress.  It  was  the  general  sense  of  gentlemen  without  doors, 
that  there  would  be  no  election  till  the  November  session ;  but 
upon  my  going  up  to  defend  Mr.  Lawrence  Washington  of  King 
George  (who  was  discharged  from  further  trial  for  the  death  of 
Mr.  Alexander)  the  House  in  that  week  proceeded  to  ballot  for 
members  of  Congress,  and  you  were  not  even  put  in  nomination 
for  some  time,  which  my  son  Stephens  perceiving,  got  so  far  the 
better  of  his  false  modesty,  as  to  propose  you,  and  afterwards 
supported  your  interest  warmly  without  doors.  Mr.  Jefferson, 
Mr.  Hardy,  yourself,  Dr.  Lee  and  Col.  Monroe  were  elected.  It 
was  lucky  for  Dr.  Lee  that  the  election  came  on  so  soon,  as  I  am 
told  the  part  he  took  two  days  afterwards  against  a  French  ship, 
which  having  been  seized  through  the  ignorance  of  the  captain, 
he  petitioned  for  the  interposition  of  the  Assembly  and  obtained 
it,  against  the  violent  opposition  of  several  who  always  have  been 
staunch  Whigs.  Dr.  Lee  joined  in  this  opposition,  and  by  so 
doing  gave  great  umbrage  to  many  who  had  before  voted  for  him, 
as  a  delegate  to  Congress,  but  declared  they  would  never  do  so 
again.     So  much  for  private  intelligence. 

I  am  really  alarmed  at  the  critical  situation  we  stand  in  with 
Great  Britain,  and  the  more  so  from  their  refusal  to  deliver  up  to 


58     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

several  of  the  citizens  of  this  State  their  slaves,  when  demanded 
under  the  authority  of  the  Executive,  by  their  respective  masters, 
in  direct  violation  of  the  Treaty.  I  cannot  entirely  agree  with 
you  in  your  sentiments  on  the  subject  of  British  debts.  The  occlu- 
sion of  the  courts  of  justice  by  any  law,  would  certainly  be  a  legal 
impediment,  but  still  I  think  that  even  this  might  be  justly  done 
without  infringing  the  treaty,  if  we  made  no  distinction  between 
the  British  and  domestic  creditor,  for  every  country  has  an  in- 
herent right  of  regulating  her  internal  police,  and  surely  where 
there  is  no  discrimination,  a  British  sovereign  has  no  right  by  the 
law  of  nations,  to  expect,  much  less  to  demand  greater  privileges 
from  us  for  his  subjects  than  we  grant  to  our  own  citizens.  And 
the  present  situation  of  our  country  is  such,  that  the  justice  we 
owe  our  citizens,  renders  it  necessary  to  place  them  before  they 
are  called  upon  to  pay  their  debts,  in  the  same  situation  they  were 
in  when  those  debts  were  contracted.  Under  this  idea  I  drew  and 
introduced  a  bill  for  the  relief  of  debtors,  and  another  for  the 
security  of  creditors.  Under  the  last  I  placed  our  courts  in  such 
a  situation  as  to  enable  the  creditor  in  all  cases  where  no  defence 
could  be  made,  to  obtain  a  judgment  in  six  months  at  the  farthest, 
and  in  all  other  cases  in  fifteen  months.  By  the  first  bill  I  enabled 
all  debtors  upon  giving  an  additional  security,  who  were  also  to 
be  liable  to  execution  upon  the  judgment  against  the  principal,  in 
case  of  non-payment,  to  pay  off  the  judgments  when  obtained  in 
five  annual  payments ;  the  judgments  to  carry  interest,  and  remain 
in  force  for  six  years  without  being  revived  by  Set:  /a.,  and  an 
execution  to  issue  annually  for  one  fifth  of  the  judgment,  and 
interest  against  principal  and  security,  till  the  whole  was  dis- 
charged. All  interest  during  the  war  was  to  cease,  and  no  debts 
to  be  affected  by  this  act' contracted  after  the  passing  of  it ;  with 
a  proviso  that  it  should  not  extend  to  any  debts  contracted  with 
foreigners  during  the  war  by  individuals. 

These  laws  being  for  the  mutual  advantage  of  debtor  and  cred- 
itor, and  a  mere  regulation  of  our  internal  police,  in  which  the 
British  subject  was  placed  on  the  same  footing  with  our  own 
citizens  (indeed  the  word  British  was  not  even  mentioned  in  the 
bill)  nor  any  kind  of  distinction  set  up,  I  well  hoped  would  have 
gone  down  ;  but  the  Shelbome  faction  were  apprehensive  it  might 
possibly  give  umbrage  to  Britain,  and  induce  them  to  infringe  the 


BILL  FOR   THE  RELIEF  OF  DEBTORS.  59 

treaty.  They  put  off  the  consideration  of  the  first  bill  to  the  next 
session  of  the  Assembly,  and  I  myself  moved  for  putting  off  that 
for  speedy  trials  to  the  same  time,  and  after  a  pretty  warm  oppo- 
sition succeeded. 

We  have  also  been  warmly  engaged  upon  a  bill  to  declare  who 
should  in  future  become  citizens  of  this  State.  The  bill  as  I 
had  modelled  it  (for  it  was  first  brought  in  with  great  severity 
and  too  little  discrimination)  excluded  all  persons  who  being  resi- 
dents of  the  United  States  after  the  Declaration  of  Independence 
had  aided  and  assisted  the  enemy,  from  ever  becoming  citizens 
or  residing  amongst  us  for  any  longer  or  other  time  than  was  or 
should  be  stipulated  in  the  provisional  articles  or  definitive  treaty 
of  peace  ;  that  all  others  who  either  left  us  or,  remaining  amongst 
us,  had  avowed  principles  inimical  to  the  independence  of  America, 
should  be  incapable  of  holding  any  post,  civil  or  military,  of  sit- 
ting in  either  House  of  Assembly,  of  voting  at  any  election,  or  of 
participating  in  our  councils  for  the  preservation  of  that  indepen- 
dence which  they  had  endeavoured  to  prevent.  Here  again  the 
Shelbome  faction  took  the  alarm,  and  the  threat  of  being  here  a 
week  longer  when  harvest  was  approaching,  induced  a  ma- 
jority to  postpone  the  consideration  of  this  also  till  the  next 
session  of  Assembly,  for  which,  as  I  had  the  yeas  and  nays  taken, 
I  fancy  their  constituents  will  not  thank  them  much  on  their  return. 

The  plan  proposed  by  Congress  for  placing  in  their  hands  a 
permanent  fund  for  the  discharge  of  the  federal  debt  was  rejected 
by  a  great  majority  as  a  precedent  dangerous  to  liberty  upon 
this  principle,  that  as  we  had  already  entrusted  them  with  the 
sword,  if  we  were  to  give  them  the  purse  also,  the  control  we  should 
afterwards  have  over  them  would  be  but  a  feeble  barrier  against 
future  encroachments  ;  for  such  was  the  lust  of  power,  that  who- 
ever was  in  possession  of  it  would  still  endeavour  to  extend  it, 
and  though  we  should  even  change  our  members  of  Congress 
annually  it  would  be  immaterial  to  us  whether  we  chose  A.  B.  C. 
or  X.  Y.  Z.,  since  every  letter  of  the  alphabet,  whilst  they  were 
members  of  any  body,  would  endeavour  to  support  and  extend 
the  power  of  that  body,  and  I  candidly  confess,  my  friend,  that  I 
joined  with  the  majority  in  this  opinion.  Yet  sensible  of  the 
necessity  of  establishing  funds,  we  have  laid  an  impost  of  five  per 
cent,  ad  valorem  and  the  duties  recommended  by  Congress  ex- 


6o     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON, 

actly  agreeable  to  their  idea  of  this  matter,  as  to  the  quantum,  but 
it  is  to  be  collected  by  our  own  officers,  and  paid  by  them  to  the 
Congressional  receiver,  who  is  to  give  a  receipt  for  it,  to  be  car- 
ried to  our  account  and  credited  to  this  State  upon  a  future 
settlement,  and  this  is  to  continue  till  the  whole  debt  is  dis- 
charged. But  this  act  is  not  to  be  applied  to  this  purpose  until 
the  other  States  have  passed  laws  similar  to  it.  This  fund  it  is 
calculated  will  amount  to  forty-thousand  pounds,  and  we  have 
added  to  it  our  whole  land  tax,  which  amounts  at  this  time  to 
ninety-five  thousand  pounds  annually,  and  will  be  an  increasing 
fund  as  our  back  lands  are  rapidly  settling.  This  tax  is  to  be 
paid  by  the  sheriffs  to  our  treasurer  and  by  him  paid  to  the  Con- 
tinental receiver,  who  is  to  give  a  receipt  for  the  same,  and  carry 
it  to  our  credit  on  a  future  settlement ;  and  if  these  funds  should 
fall  short,  the  deficiency  is  to  be  made  good  out  of  the  slave  tax, 
which  amounts  to  one  hundred  and  twenty  thousand  pounds 
annually,  but  as  we  do  not  expect  that  this  last  fund  will  ever  be 
called  on,  in  aid  of  the  others,  we  have  ventured  to  appropriate 
part  of  the  slave  tax  to  other  purposes.  That  I  may  be  perfectly 
understood  upon  this  subject,  the  duties  upon  imposts  and  the 
land  tax  are  appropriated  to  Congress  till  the  whole  of  the  Con- 
tinental debt  is  discharged,  without  having  any  other  regard  to 
this  State's  particular  quota  of  that  debt  than  to  have  credit  at  a 
future  settlement  of  what  we  may  pay  more  than  our  quota 
amounts  to. 

Without  regard  to  our  internal  police  of  revenue  we  have 
passed  a  law  to  establish  a  fund  for  paying  the  annual  interest  of 
the  certificates  granted  our  officers  and  soldiers,  and  the  principal 
at  eight  annual  payments,  the  first  payment  to  be  made  the  first 
day  of  January,  1786.  To  do  this  we  have  laid  an  additional  tax 
of  id, per  bushel  upon  salt^  %  2  /per  ct.  on  imported  hemp,  1  /per  ct. 
on  imported  cordage,  1/  per  lb.  on  imported  snuff,  4d.  per  gal- 
lon on  imported  spirits,  6  per  gallon  upon  wine,  a  duty  upon  tea» 
sugar  and  some  other  articles  which  I  do  not  recollect,  and  j  / 
per  hogshead  on  tobacco,%  [Mr.  Mason  makes  this  marginal  note  : 
''  N.  B.  I  think  the  articles  marked  thus  %  ought  not  to  have 
been  taxed,  because  the  first  being  a  necessary  of  life  will  fall 
heavy  upon  the  poor  especially  in  the  back  parts  where  it  will 
raise  the  price  of  salt  even  in  Loudon  to  7  or  8/  and  in   coun- 


VIRGINIA'S  FUNDS  AND  LIABILITIES.  6l 

ties  further  back  to  double  that  sum,  and  tobacco  is  an  export/'] 
This  it  is  thought  will  amount  to  thirty  thousand  pounds.  The 
deficiency  is  to  be  made  good  by  the  slave  tax.  It  is  presumed 
that  a  fund  of  seventy  thousand  pounds  will  answer  the  ends  pro- 
posed by  this  law. 

For  my  own  part  I  think  this  law  an  unwise  one,  because  no 
new  tax  ought  ever  to  be  appropriated  to  any  purpose  but  to  the 
contingent  charges  of  government,  till  experience  has  evinced  that 
the  commodity  taxed  will  bear  it  with  convenience,  and  some 
certain  estimate  can  be  made  of  what  it  will  produce,  as  when  it 
is  once  appropriated  to  a  permanent  fund  it  cannot  afterwards  be 
discontinued,  however  inconvenient,  without  a  breach  of  public 
faith.  I  should  therefore  have  been  better  pleased  that  the  whole 
seventy  thousand  pounds  had  been  drawn  from  the  State  tax, 
and  these  duties  appropriated  to  the  contingent  charges  of  gov- 
ernment, and  then  they  might  have  been  altered  hereafter  as 
experience  might  have  convinced  us  was  necessary.  Besides 
there  not  being  a  particular  portion  of  the  slave  tax  fund  set 
apart  for  this  use,  and  the  civil  list,  the  deficiencies  to  Congress 
and  the  deficiency  to  the  officers  and  soldiers,  all  being  quartered 
upon  that  fund,  without  pointing  out  what  proportion  of  it  shall 
be  applied  to  each,  will  introduce  confusion  ;  some  creditors  will 
get  all,  some  none,  and  our  credit  be  thereby  impaired,  for  I  am 
convinced  our  funds  are  amply  sufficient,  but  from  want  of  sys- 
tem and  method  in  that  department  alone,  all  our  distresses 
arrive.  To  illustrate  this  I  will  state  the  true  situation  of  our 
debts  and  funds  as  nearly  as  I  can  from  memory,  which  though 
not  strictly  right  will  be  nearly  so. 

Annual  land  tax £  95,000  increasing  rapidly. 

Impost 40,000 

;fi35.ooo 
Part  of  slave  tax 15,000 

;f  150,000  to  be  paid  to  Congress. 

Annual  balance  of  slave  tax ;f  105,000 

Additional  imposts 30,000 

Poll  tax  upon  whites,  rapidly  increasing 50,000 

Upon  horses,  cattle  and  wheel  carriages 40,000 

Upon  ordinary  and  marriage  licences 5i<'<^ 

£^y},QOO 


62      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

Officeni*  and  soldiers'  certificates ;f  70,000 

Civil  list  expenditures,  including  the  executive,  judiciary  and  legis- 
lative and  members  to  Congress 30,000 

Loan  Office  certificates.  950.000,  is i5>ooo 

British  debts  paid  into  the  treasury  when  settled  a  depreciation 

50,000 3.000 

Foreign  and  domestic  debt  150,000 15.000 

Contingent  charges  of  government 20.000 

;tfi53.ooo 
Balance  to  be  applied  towards  pajring  the  principal  ;f  77.000 

We  yesterday  received  the  report  from  a  committee  to  whom 
was  referred  Mr.  Simon  Nathan's  claim  to  a  large  quantity  of 
tobacco,  under  an  award  given  by  some  gentlemen  in  Philadel- 
phia to  whom  it  was  submitted  by  our  delegates  in  Congress  at 
the  request  of  the  governor.  The  committee  had  voted  it 
reasonable,  upon  a  supposition  that  the  State  was  bound  by  the 
acceptance  of  the  bills  by  the  governor,  and  the  award  in  Phila- 
delphia ;  but  it  appearing  manifestly  that  the  bills  were  drawn 
for  paper  currency  at  a  depreciated  value,  only  equal  to  ;^i5oo» 
though  the  bills  were  for  ;^  13,000,  and  that  the  governor  had 
actually  paid  200,000  tobacco  at  25  per  ct.,  a  large  majority 
refused  to  pay  more,  upon  this  principle,  that  the  governor  being 
deceived  or  even  mistaken  at  the  time  of  his  acceptance,  that 
acceptance  was  not  binding  for  more  than  was  actually  due  ;  and 
it  appearing  upon  the  face  of  the  award,  that  the  arbitrators  were 
mistaken  in  the  matter  of  fact,  viz.  that  they  were  drawn  for 
specie  value  the  State  was  not  bound  by  it,  since  that  would  be  a 
sufficient  foundation  for  setting  aside  an  award  in  any  court  of 
Judicature.  The  matter  is  again  to  be  referred  to  arbitrators  in 
Maryland.* 

Thus  I  have  now  given  you  a  particular  account  of  all  our  public 
affairs  worth  mentioning.  And  now  let  me  ask  my  young  friend 
if  none  of  the  young  ladies  of  Philadelphia  have  had  influence 
enough  with  you  to  resign  the  name  given  you  by  some  ladies  in 
Prince  William  ?  I  presume  you  have  heard  that  your  acquaint- 
ance my  son  Stephens  was  married  the  first  of  May.     He  and  his 

^  (*ompare  the  letter  of  Edmund  Randolph  on  this  subject.  Conway's  *'  Life 
0/  Uanddlph,"  p.  51.  Thomson  Mason  gives  good  reasons  for  the  so-called 
"  rapudlalion." 


GENERAL   GREENE  IN  ALEXANDRIA.  63 

lady  (formerly  Miss  Polly  Armistead)  who  are  both  in  town,  pre- 
sent their  compliments  to  you. 

Adieu  my  dear  sir,  and  believe  me  to  be 

Your  sincerely  afifectionate 

Thomson  Mason.' 

George  Mason  wrote  from  "  Gunston  Hall,"  the  27th  of 
August  to  Messrs.  Hunter,  Allison,  and  Company,  merchants 
in  Alexandria,  a  letter  of  business  relating  to  his  tobacco 
sales,  and  in  a  postscript  he  gives  the  news  he  had  lately 
received  from  Europe.  "  I  have  a  letter,"  he  writes,  "  from 
my  son  George,  dated  in  Nantes,  June  20th,  where  he  has 
been  waiting  six  or  seven  weeks  for  a  passage  in  the  Hannibal^ 
Capt.  Cunningham.  He  says  the  definitive  treaty  is  proceed- 
ing slowly,  on  account  of  the  difficulties  of  adjusting  matters 
with  the  States-General.  The  court  of  London,  have  in  the 
meantime  made  provision  by  proclamation,  for  a  commercial 
intercourse  with  the  United  States  of  America.  The  Al- 
gcrines  have  fitted  out  a  small  fleet  on  purpose  to  cruise 
against  American  vessels,  notwithstanding  the  Emperor  of 
Morocco's  orders  to  his  Admiral.  I  very  much  suspect  this 
a  British  intrigue  to  discourage  our  trade  in  the  Mediterra- 
nean." * 

General  Greene,  returning  from  the  South  in  the  fall  of 
1783,  records  in  his  diary  the  incidents  of  his  journey. 
Near  Dumfries  his  carriage  was  overturned,  and  he  was 
much  bruised.  But  he  spent  an  agreeable  evening  there 
at  Colonel  Grayson's,  and  dined  on  the  13th  of  September 
at  *'  Mount  Vernon."  At  Alexandria  he  was  taken  ill  with 
fever,  which  prevented  him  from  accepting  the  public  din- 
ner the  citizens  wished  to  give  him.  He  writes  from  Alex- 
andria : 

"  R.  H.  Lee  and  many  others  came  to  see  me,  but  I  was  too 
unwell  to  enjoy  company,  and  most  part  of  the  time  to  see  any. 
.  .  .  Colonel  [name  illegible]  and  his  son  William,  an  amiable 
youth,  was  to  see  me,  and  carried  off.  Major  Hyrne  on  a  visit  to 

•  MS.  Letter. 


64     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON, 

Mr.  Mason's,  where  one  of  the  young  ladies  made  a  great  impres- 
sion on  his  heart." ' 

This  was  probably  Colonel  Mason  and  his  son  William 
Mason. 

At  the  meeting  of  the  Assembly  in  October,  General 
Nelson  presented  a  bill  to  invest  the  United  States  with 
a  power  to  lay  certain  duties  for  the  use  of  the  United 
States.  This  power  of  taxation  was  the  one  the  States  least 
liked  to  entrust  to  Congress,  but  an  urgent  public  necessity 
eventually  forced  the  measure  from  them.  On  the  26th  of 
November,  the  speaker  laid  before  the  House  a  letter  from 
Edmund  Randolph,  respecting  the  proceedings  of  the  per- 
sons appointed  to  vindicate  the  title  of  Virginia  to  western 
territory,  stating  the  progress  made  in  that  business.  Rives, 
in  his  "  Life  of  Madison,"  says  of  the  work  appointed  the 
committee  that  it  does  not  appear  the  task  was  ever  exe- 
cuted. A  defence,  however,  was  prepared,  as  would  appear 
from  this  letter  of  Edmund  Randolph  to  the  Speaker  of 
the  House.  In  it  he  speaks  of  the  difficulty  of  getting  the 
committee  together,  and  adds: 

"  Mr.  George  Mason  has  already,  however,  perused  and 
approved  about  a  third  of  the  composition.  If  the  General 
Assembly  will  therefore  permit  the  work  to  go  into  print  under 
the  correction  of  Mr.  Mason  and  myself,  we  may  probably  be 
able  soon  to  concert  the  measures  necessary  for  its  publication, 
as  I  shall  see  him  on  my  way  to  Alexandria  about  the  24th 
of  next  month,  whither  I  am  going  on  business  of  Mr.  Nathan." ' 

On  the  8th  of  December  the  House  resolved  : 

"  That  the  delegates  of  this  State  to  the  Congress  of  the  United 
States  be  instructed  and  fully  authorized  to  convey,  by  proper 
instrument,  in  writing  on  the  part  of  this  State  to  the  Congress 
of  the  United  States,  all  right,  title  and  claim,  which  the  said 
Commonwealth  hath  to  the  lands  northward  of  the  Ohio,  upon 

'  '*  Life  of  Genl.  Nathaniel  Greene,"  vol.  ii.,  George  Washington  Greene,  p. 
508. 
*  MS.  Letter,  State  Library,  Richmond. 


MADISON   VISITS  "  GUNSTON  HALL."  6$ 

the  terms  contained  in  the  act  of  Congress  of  the  thirteenth 
September  last :  Provided  that  lands  be  reserved  out  of  these 
hereby  proposed  to  be  ceded  sufficient  to  make  good  the  several 
military  bounties  agreed  to  be  given  to  sundry  officers  by  resolu- 
tions of  both  Houses  of  Assembly  :  the  lands  hitherto  reserved 
being  insufficient  for  that  purpose." 

And  on  the  15th  Joseph  Jones  presented  a  bill  in  accord- 
ance with  this  resolution.'  This  cession  was  accepted  by 
Congress  and,  as  Hinsdale  says  in  his  able  work  on  this 
subject,  it  ended  the  long  struggle  between  Virginia  and  the 
States  in  Congress  opposed  to  her  rights,  leaving  Virginia 
substantially  victorious.  She  retained,  as  she  had  desired, 
the  lands  now  forming  the  States  of  Kentucky  and  West 
Virginia,  "the  territory  south-east  of  the  Ohio,  the  sole 
question  at  issue."'  In  the  interests  of  peace  and  union, 
Virginia  had  made  a  generous  gift  to  the  Confederacy.  She 
parted  with  two  hundred  and  seventy  thousand,  five  hundred 
and  fifty  square  miles  of  territory,  which  by  its  sale  since  to 
private  individuals  has  enriched  the  Federal  treasury  to  the 
extent  of  more  than  a  hundred  million  of  dollars.'  George 
Mason,  as  has  been  seen,  first  sketched  the  terms  of  this 
cession,  and  by  his  influence,  in  and  out  of  the  Assembly, 
aided  in  securing  its  adoption  by  his  State. 

What  Colonel  Mason  thought  of  the  measures  of  the 
Assembly  at  this  session  we  learn  through  a  letter  from 
Madison  to  Jefferson,  written  after  his  return  from  Congress 
then  sitting  at  Annapolis : 

"  Orange,  December  loth,  1783. 

"  I  took  Col.  Mason  in  my  way,  and  had  an  evening's  conver- 
sation with  him.  I  found  him  much  less  opposed  to  the  general 
impost  than  I  expected.     Indeed  he  disclaimed  all  opposition 

*  Journal  of  the  Assembly. 

•  **  The  Old  Northwest,"  p.  245.  A  part  of  this  territory  was  torn  from  Vir- 
ginia, in  direct  violation  of  the  Constitution,  and  erected  into  a  new  State, 
within  our  own  time. 

'  Bill  introduced  into  the  Virginia  Assembly,  February,  1888. 
Vol.  II.— 5  \ 


1 


■l?^ 


66     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON, 

to  the  measure  itself,  but  had  taken  up  a  vague  apprehension, 
that,  if  adopted  at  this  crisis,  it  might  embarrass  the  defence  of 
our  trade  against  British  machinations.  He  seemed,  upon  the 
whole,  to  acquiesce  in  the  territorial  cession,  but  dwelt  much  on 
the  expediency  of  the  guaranty.  On  the  article  of  a  convention 
for  revising  our  form  of  State  government,  he  was  sound  and 
ripe,  and,  I  think  would  not  decline  a  participation  in  the  work. 
His  heterodoxy  lay  chiefly  in  being  too  little  impressed  with 
either  the  necessity  or  the  proper  means  of  preserving  the 
Confederacy." ' 

Jefferson  wrote  to  Madison  from  Annapolis  on  the  follow- 
ing day,  making  anxious  inquiries  as  to  the  sentiments  of 
the  recluse  at  "Gunston"  on  the  subject  of  the  State 
Constitution : 

''  You  have  seen  G.  M.  I  hope,  and  had  much  conversation 
with  him.  What  are  his  sentiments  as  to  the  amendment  of  our 
constitution  ?  What  amendments  would  he  oppose  ?  Is  he 
determined  to  sleep  on,  or  will  he  rouse  and  be  active  ?  I 
wish  to  hear  from  you  on  this  subject."* 

His  compatriots  were  all  desirous  to  know  George  Mason's 
views,  and  to  see  him  back  again  in  public  life.  Joseph 
Jones  wrote  to  Jefferson  on  the  29th  of  December  in  regard 
to  the  British  debt  question  and  other  important  subjects 
that  would  come  before  the  Assembly  at  its  next  session. 
And  he  feared  the  abilities  of  this  body  would  not  be  equal 
to  the  trust :  "  Madison's  aid  I  think  we  may  depend  on  " ; 
he  adds,  ''  perhaps  old  Mr.  G.  Mason's,  as  the  business  of 
the  land  offices  requires  revision,  and  his  apprehensions  on 
that  subject,  if  nothing  else,  may  draw  him  from  his  retire* 
ment."  ■ 

Washington  resigned  his  commission  in  December,  and 
left  Annapolis  in  time  to  reach  "  Mount  Vernon  "  Christmas- 
eve.     From  a  young  lady's  letter,  Miss  Lewis  of  Fredericks- 

*  **  Madison  Papers,"  vol.  i.,  p.  579. 

'  Bancroft's  *'  History  of  the  Constitution/*  vol.  i.,  p.  335,  Appendix. 

•  **  Letters  of  Joseph  Jones,"  p.  137. 


CHRISTiiAS-DA  Y  IN   1783.  67 

burg,  probably  the  daughter  of  Colonel  Fielding  Lewis, 
General  Washington's  brother-in-law,  we  obtain  a  lively  pic- 
ture of  the  home-coming  of  the  chief  and  the  attendant 
festivities.  And  the  foremost  figure  among  the  guests  was 
Colonel  Mason,  whose  appearance  is  pleasantly  portrayed 
by  the  pen  of  his  fair  young  admirer: 

"  I  must  tell  you  what  a  charming  day  I  spent  at  Mount  Ver- 
non with  Mama  and  Sally.  The  general  and  madame  came  home 
on  Christmas  Eve,  and  such  a  racket  the  servants  made,  for  they 
were  glad  of  their  coming !  Three  handsome  young  officers 
came  with  them.  All  Christmas  afternoon  people  came  to  pay 
their  respects  and  duty.  Among  them  were  stalely  dames  and 
gay  young  women.  The  general  seemed  very  happy,  and  Mis- 
tress Washington  was  busy  from  daybreak  making  everything  as 
agreeable  as  possible  for  everybody.  Among  the  most  notable 
of  the  callers  was  Mr.  George  Mason,  of  Gunston  Hall,  who  was 
on  his  way  home  from  Alexandria,  and  who  brought  a  charming 
granddaughter  with  him,  about  fourteen  years  old.  He  is  said  to 
be  one  of  the  greatest  statesmen  and  wisest  men  in  Virginia.  We 
had  heard  much  of  him  and  were  delighted  to  look  in  his  face, 
hear  him  speak,  and  take  his  hand,  which  he  offered  in  a  courtly 
manner.  He  is  straight  in  figure  but  not  tall,  and  has  a  grand 
head  and  clear  gray  eyes.  He  has  few  white  hairs,  though  they  say 
he  is  about  sixty  years  old."  ' 

*  "  M«r7  and  Martha  Wuhington,"  B.  J.  Losing,  p.  33q. 


CHAPTER  III. 

VIRCimA'S  COMPACT   WITH   MARYLAND. 
I 784-1 787. 

The  following  letter,  found  amon^  Monroe's  papers,'  Is 
believed  to  have  been  written  by  him  to  George  Mason,  to 
whom  the  younger  statesman  had  applied  for  advice  on  the 
several  important  public  questions  before  the  country.  Mon- 
roe was  at  this  time  in  Congress  at  Annapolis : 

"  Anmapolis,  Febrnuy,  1784. 
"  Dear  Sir  : 

"Your  favor  of  the  5  th  ultimo  did  not  reach  me  till  a  few  days 
since  from  the  difficulty  the  severity  of  the  season  hath  created 
in  passage  of  the  rivers.  I  am  particularly  happy  to  receive  it  as  it 
promises  to  me,  in  the  office  which  I  hold,  the  aid  of  your  age, 
judgment  and  experience.  I  have  paid  great  attention  to  your 
reasoning,  and  think  that  in  two  instances,  viz.,  the  peace  estab- 
lishment and  the  seat  for  the  residence  of  Congress,  it  is  conclu- 
sive. If  no  European  power  had  possessions  on  the  continent  I 
should  suppose  the  idea  of  a  standing  army  would  never  have 
been  brought  upon  the  carpet.  The  Indian  incursions  or  trade, 
as  you  observe,  would  more  regularly  come  within  the  cognizance 
of  the  State  exposed  or  to  derive  advantage  from  it.  But  the 
possessions  of  these  powers,  and  particularly  of  Great  Britain,  is  a 
matter  of  more  serious  import.  The  impolicy  of  New  York  hath 
already  thrown  a  considerable  body  of  people  into  Nova  Scotia ; 
and  Canada,  in  tracts  at  present  uninhabited,  is  certainly  capable 

*  Evidently  the  rough,  liimt  dnft  -at  the  letter  Knt  to  his  correspondeat. 
There  wu  some  doubt  *t  finl  u  lo  Iti  auChonhip,  but  Mr.  BuicrofI,  to  whom 
the  MS.  vru  ibown,  pronounced  It  unmiitakabl]'  Mooroc'i  handwriting. 


JAMES  MONROE    TO  GEORGE  MASON.  69 


of  maintaining  extensive  settlements.  Many  European  countries, 
in  a  higher  northern  latitude,  are  thickly  settled,  and  the  lands  of 
Canada  are  perhaps  richer  than  those  of  the  Swiss  Cantons,  Den- 
mark, Sweden  or  Russia.  These  provinces  are  also  well  tim- 
bered, and  at  the  same  time  that  the  inhabitants  promise  to  be  an 
hardy  and  robust  race  of  men  give  them  all  the  advantages  from 
their  situation  of  a  nursery  for  seamen,  dock-yards  for  building 
ships  and  a  share  in  our  carrying  business. 

''  The  court  of  London  hath  turned  its  attention  to  the  Indies, 
proposing  to  attempt  such  arrangements  as  may  compensate  to  the 
nation  the  loss  of  America.  But  what  can  Great  Britain  promise 
[herself]  from  the  Indies  which  she  doth  not  now  possess.  If 
colonies  are  established  upon  the  footing  we  lately  stood,  and 
emigration  is  encouraged,  how  long  will  they  be  connected  with 
the  parent  country  ?  And  will  not  such  establishments  which 
take  the  Indies  out  of  the  Company  induce  the  necessity  of  stand- 
ing armies  and  respectable  fleets  to  prevent  insurrection,,  and 
turn  the  tide  of  commerce  into  the  bosom  of  the  parent  country, 
and  will  not  this  expense  be  thrown  upon  the  state  ?  And  as  the 
climate  suits  a  despotic  government,  and  the  general  in  com- 
mand may  be  popular  with  his  troops,  is  it  not  rational  to  suspect 
he  will  seek  the  sovereignty  himself  ?  If  these  questions  could 
be  answered  in  the  negative,  I  think  it  will  be  granted  that  the 
possession  of  India  will  only  prove  a  commercial  advantage.  The 
inhabitants  of  these  provinces  will  have  but  little  attatchment  to 
the  parent  country,  and  will  personally  be  never  brought  to  add 
to  its  number  or  increase  its  strength  in  any  European  operation, 
While  this  trade  and  government  are  in  the  possession  of  a  com- 
pany, the  nation  is  free  from  the  expense  of  these  troops  or  fleets. 
Considering  therefore  all  the  relative  circumstances,  I  think  it  a 
doubtful  question  whether  this  change  would  be  of  public  advan- 
tage, while  most  certainly  it  would  prove  very  materially  injurious 
to  the  Crown.  The  Crown  now  has  the  advantage  of  the  sale 
occasionally  of  the  renewal  of  the  charter  to  the  Company,  and 
of  this  it  would  of  course  be  deprived.  I  think  therefore  the 
conclusion  just  that  the  monopoly  of  the  trade  and  expense  of 
the  government  will  remain  with  the  Company,  and  that  any 
arrangement  the  court  of  London  may  make  with  respect  to  that 
country  will  only  tend  to  create  dependants  on  the  Crown  and 


yo     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OP  GEORGE  MASON, 

increase  its  influence  in  the  Parliament  without  effecting  any 
material  change  in  the  constitution  of  India.  View  the  prospects 
of  Britain  as  we  will  in  the  East  and  I  cannot  see  how  in  any 
event  any  arrangements  can  turn  to  any  great  national  advantage. 
Will  the  population  of  India  increase  the  number  of  British  citi- 
zens ?  Will  any  Eastern  arrangement  increase  the  fleet  or  add  to 
the  army  but  to  guard  itself  ?  I  am  therefore  of  opinion  that  if 
the  court  of  London  are  wise  they  will  be  cautious  how  they 
interpose  in  the  affairs  of  the  East. 

''  I  am  therefore  of  opinion  that  the  Court  of  London  will  still 
turn  her  attention  to  this  continent  in  every  consideration  she 
may  have  in  view  to  add  to  or  increase  her  national  strength. 
Passion  or  folly  may  sometimes  govern  her  councils,  but  in  time 
she  will  observe  her  error  and  attempt  to  correct  the  fault.  I 
think  as  national  advantages  are  to  be  derived  from  it,  she  will 
turn  her  attention  to  these  provinces,  and  there  is  a  kind  of 
energy  in  the  natives  of  that  country  which  is  not  to  be  found  in 
the  peasantry  of  any  of  the  monarchies  of  Europe.  When  any  of 
the  countries  are  overstocked  in  France  or  Spain  the  overplus 
turn  beggars  in  the  street  or  starve  ;  but  the  people  of  England 
seek  a  dwelling  in  foreign  climes  and  distant  countries.  I  suppose, 
therefore,  these  provinces  will  prove  a  drain  to  the  surplus  of 
citizens  in  Great  Britain.  What  will  be  their  policy  with  respect 
to  these  provinces,  whether  they  will  extend  to  them  the  freedom 
of  the  British  Constitution,  or  keep  in  them  a  standing  army,  be 
this  as  it  may,  will  it  not  be  a  desirable  circumstance  to  us  to 
prevail  on  them  to  keep  few  or  no  troops  in  Canada  ?  Will  not 
this  be  a  proper  subject  for  a  convention  between  us  ?  But 
if  they  will  not  acceed  to  it,  I  still  think  with  you  that  the 
defence  of  the  country  should  be  thrown  on  the  militia."  * 

Colonel  Mason's  friends  in  Fairfax  County  were  anxious 
to  see  him  again  in  the  Assembly,  and  some  of  them,  it 
seems,  in  the  spring  of  1784  were  about  to  take  a  step  that 
would  force  him  to  re-enter  the  Legislature,  as  they  hoped. 
Against  this  proceeding  he  made  a  vigorous  protest  in  a 
letter  to  his  friend  Mr.  Cockburn,  declaring  that  it  was  an 
infringement  of  his  personal  liberty : 

>  Gouverneur  Collection.  The  MS.  draft  is  endorsed  by  Monroe,  *'  Supposed 
to  have  been  written  to  Col.  George  Mason.'* 


COLONEL  MASON  AND    THE  COUNTY  ELECTION.      yi 

GuNSTON  Hall,  April  i8,  1784. 

Dear  Sir  : 

I  have  been  lately  informed  that  some  people  intend  to  open  a 
poll  for  me  at  the  election  to-morrow  in  this  county.  I  hope  this 
will  not  be  offered  for  I  have  repeatedly  declared  that  I  cannot 
serve  the  county  at  this  time  as  one  of  its  representatives.  I 
should  look  upon  such  an  attempt  in  no  other  light  than  an 
oppressive  and  unjust  invasion  of  my  personal  liberty,  and  was  I 
to  be  elected  under  such  circumstances  I  should  certainly  refuse  to 
act,  be  the  consequences  what  they  may.  I  mention  this  to  you 
in  your  official  capacity  as  high  sheriff  of  the  county,  and  if  a 
poll  is  demanded  for  me  I  must  request  the  favor  of  you  to 
inform  the  people  publicly  of  my  resolution,  and  that  such  a 
demand  is  made  against  my  consent  or  approbation.  If  ever 
I  should  see  a  time  when  I  have  just  cause  to  think  I  can  render 
the  public  essential  service  and  can  so  arrange  my  domestic  con- 
cerns so  as  to  enable  me  to  leave  my  family  for  any  length  of 
time,  I  will  most  cheerfully  let  the  county  know  it,  but  this  is  not 
the  case  in  either  instance  at  present. 

Your  affectionate  and  obedient  servant, 

G.  Mason.' 

Others  besides  his  constituents,  as  we  have  seen,  wished  to 
recall  George  Mason  to  the  councils  of  the  State.  Madison 
and  Jefferson  were  still  urging  changes  in  the  Virginia  Con- 
stitution. Madison  wrote  to  his  friend  on  this  subject 
March  i6th :  "  Much  will  depend  on  the  politics  of  Mr. 
Henry  which  are  wholly  unknown  to  me.  Should  they  be 
adverse,  and  G.  Mason  not  in  the  Assembly,  hazardous  as 
delay  is,  the  experiment  must  be  put  off  to  a  more  au- 
spicious conjunction."'  After  the  opening  of  the  session 
he  writes  from  Richmond,  deploring  Jefferson's  departure  to 
Europe  at  this  time,  and  adds  in  regard  to  the  contemplated 
revision  of  the  Constitution :  "  As  Col.  Mason  remains  in 
private  life,  the  expediency  of  starting  the  idea  will  depend 
much  on  the  part  to  be  expected  from  R.  H.  Lee  and  Mr. 
Henry." ' 

'  Mason  Papers.  *  "  Writings  of  Madison,**  vol.  i.,  p.  73. 

*  /Hd.,  vol.  i.,  p.  80. 


72     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON 

In  the  meantime  though  George  Mason  was  no  longer 
in  the  Assembly,  his  State  had  some  work  for  him  to  do 
which  he  could  not  refuse  to  undertake.  On  the  28th  of 
June  the  following  resolution  was  introduced  in  the  House 
of  Delegates : 

*'  Whereas  great  inconveniences  are  found  to  result  from  the 
want  of  some  concerted  regulations  between  this  State  and 
the  State  of  Maryland,  touching  the  jurisdiction  and  naviga- 
tion of  the  river  Potomac  ;  Resolvedy  That  George  Mason,  Ed- 
mund Randolph,  James  Madison,  jun.,  and  Alexander  Henderson, 
Esqrs.  be  appointed  commissioners  ;  and  that  they,  or  any  three 
of  them,  do  meet  such  commissioners  as  may  be  appointed  on 
the  part  of  Maryland,  and  in  concert  with  them  frame  such  liberal 
and  equitable  regulations  concerning  the  said  river,  as  may  be 
mutually  advantageous  to  the  two  States  ;  and  that  they  make 
report  thereof  to  the  General  Assembly."  ' 

Questions  of  trade  and  revenue  were  much  discussed  at 
this  session,  and  the  subject  of  the  British  debts  still  agitated 
the  Assembly  and  the  people.  Should  the  treaty  of  peace 
be  carried  out  in  all  its  provisions,  while  the  British  still  held 
the  western  posts,  was  asked.  At  the  fall  session  of  1784-5 
the  subject  was  renewed  in  the  Assembly,  and  through  Madi- 
son's influence,  provision  was  finally  made  for  payments  of 
British  debts  in  seven  annual  instalments.  But  the  House 
adjourned  before  the  bill  was  acted  upon,  and  the  matter 
remained  practically  unsettled  until  after  the  adoption  of 
the  Federal  Constitution.  Other  subjects  of  interest  to 
Colonel  Mason  brought  before  this  Assembly  were  the  assess- 
ment plan,  and  resolutions  adding  to  the  duties  assigned  the 
commission  of  which  he  had  been  appointed  a  member  at 
the  previous  session.  On  the  nth  of  November  the  House 
resolved :  "  That  the  people  of  this  commonwealth,  accord- 
ing to  their  respective  abilities,  ought  to  pay  a  moderate  tax 
or  contribution  annually,  for  the  support  of  the  Christian 
religion,  or  of  some  Christian  church,  denomination  or  com- 

'  Journal  of  the  Assembly. 


VIRGINIA'S  PROPOSAL    TO  PENNSYLVANIA.  73 

munion  of  Christians,  or  of  some  form  of  Christian  wor- 
ship." *  Patrick  Henry,  who  favored  the  resolution,  was 
made  chairman  of  the  committee  appointed  to  bring  in  a 
bill  on  the  subject.  Those  who  opposed  the  assessment, 
with  Madison  at  their  head,  finally  induced  the  Assembly  to 
postpone  consideration  of  the  bill  until  the  following  Novem- 
ber. It  was  to  be  published  with  a  record  of  the  votes  upon 
it,  in  handbills,  and  twelve  copies  given  to  each  member  to 
be  distributed  in  their  respective  counties,  and  the  people 
were  requested  to  signify  their  opinion  respecting  the  adop- 
tion of  such  a  bill  to  the  next  session  of  the  Assembly.  On 
the  28th  of  December  the  House  came  to  the  following 
resolutions : 

"  That  the  commissioners  or  any  two  of  them  appointed  on  the 
twenty-eighth  of  June  last,  to  concert  with  commissioners  on  the 
part  of  Maryland,  regulations  touching  the  navigation  and  juris- 
diction of  the  Potomac,  be  further  authorized  to  unite  with  the  said 
commissioners  in  representing  to  the  State  of  Pennsylvania,  that 
it  is  in  contemplation  of  the  said  two  States  to  promote  the  clear- 
ing and  extending  the  navigation  of  the  Potomac,  from  tide  water 
upwards  as  far  as  the  same  may  be  found  practicable  ;  to  open  a 
convenient  road  from  the  head  of  such  navigation  to  the  waters 
running  into  the  Ohio  ;  and  to  render  the  waters  navigable  as  far 
as  may  be  necessary  and  proper  :  That  the  said  works  will  require 
great  expense,  which  may  not  be  repaid  unless  a  free  use  be  se- 
cured to  the  said  States  and  their  citizens,  of  the  waters  of  the 
Ohio  and  its  branches  so  far  as  the  same  lie  within  the  limits  of 
Pennsylvania.  That  as  essential  advantages  will  accrue  from 
such  works,  to  a  considerable  portion  of  said  State,  it  is  thought 
reasonable  that  the  legislature  thereof,  should  by  some  previous 
act,  engage  that  for  the  encouragement  of  the  said  works,  all  articles 
of  produce  and  merchandise  which  may  be  conveyed  to  or  from 
either  of  the  said  two  States  through  either  of  the  said  rivers, 
within  the  limits  of  Pennsylvania  to  or  from  any  place  without 
the  said  limits,  shall  pass  throughout  free  from  all  duties  or  tolls 
whatsoever  other  than  such  tolls  as  may  be  established  and  be 
necessary  for  reimbursing  expenses  incurred  by  the  State  or  its 

^  IHd. 


74     I^P^  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

citizens,  in  clearing,  or  for  defraying  the  expense  of  preserving 
the  navigation  of  the  said  rivers  :  And  that  no  articles  imported 
into  the  State  of  Pennsylvania  through  the  channel  or  channels, 
or  any  part  thereof  to  be  opened  as  aforesaid  and  vended  or  used 
within  the  said  State,  shall  be  subject  to  any  duties  or  imposts 
other  than  such  articles  would  be  subject  to  if  imported  into  the 
said  State  through  any  other  channel  whatsoever  :  That  in  case 
a  joint  representation  in  behalf  of  this  State  and  of  Maryland 
shall  be  rendered  by  circumstances  unattainable,  the  said  com- 
missioners or  any  two  of  them,  may  of  themselves  make  such 
representations  on  the  subject  to  the  State  of  Pennsylvania,  as 
will  in  such  event  become  proper." ' 

We  obtain  a  glimpse  of  Colonel  Mason  in  domestic  life, 
and  of  the  family  circle,  through  a  letter  to  his  daughter, 
Mrs.  McCarty,  on  the  death  of  an  infant.  The  original 
letter  has  been  carefully  preserved  by  this  lady's  grand- 
daughter : 

GUNSTON  Hall,  February  loth,  1785. 

My  dear  Child  : 

I  most  sincerely  condole  with  you  for  the  loss  of  your  dear 
little  girl,  but  it  is  our  duty  to  submit  with  all  the  resignation 
human  nature  is  capable  of  to  the  dispensation  of  Divine  Provi- 
dence which  bestows  upon  us  our  blessings,  and  consequently 
has  a  right  to  take  them  away.  A  few  years'  experience  will  con- 
vince us  that  those  things  which  at  the  time  they  happened  we 
regarded  as  our  greatest  misfortunes  have  proved  our  greatest 
blessings.  Of  this  awful  truth  no  person  has  lived  to  my  age 
without  seeing  abundant  proof.  Your  dear  baby  has  died  inno- 
cent and  blameless,  and  has  been  called  away  by  an  all  wise  and 
merciful  Creator,  most  probably  from  a  life  of  misery  and  mis- 
fortune, and  most  certainly  to  one  of  happiness  and  bliss. 

Your  sisters  are  both  at  Col.  Blackburn's  and  not  expected 
home  before  Sunday  or  you  should  immediately  have  their  com- 
pany. Your  brother  George  and  his  wife  are  in  Chotanck.  I 
wish  you  could  come  to  Gunston  Hall.  In  the  meantime  I  would 
by  all  means  advise  you  to  lose  a  little  blood  without  delay,  and 

» IHd, 


DEA  TH  OF   THOMSON  MASON.  J$ 

to  take  two  or  three  times  a  day  twenty  or  thirty  drops  of  spirits 

of  lavender  of  which  I  send  you  some  by  the  bearer.     I  am,  my 

dear  child, 

Your  affectionate  father 

George  Mason. 

P.  S. — Mrs.  Mason  says  your  sisters  told  her  they  should  go 

to  Col.  Cook's,  and  would  not  be  at  home  before  the  middle  of 

next  week.     She  begs  that  you  ^ will  come  to  Gunston  Hall. 

"  Colonel  Cooke  *'  was  Travers  Cooke,  of  StafTord  County, 
son  of  Sir  John  Cooke  and  grandson  of  Raleigh  Travers. 
Colonel  Cooke's  son,  John  Cooke,  married  Mary  Mason,  one 
of  George  Mason's  daughters. 

In  this  same  month  of  February,  1785,  Colonel  Mason  lost 
his  brother,  Thomson  Mason,  who  died  on  the  26th,  and  was 
buried  at  his  place,  "  Raspberry  Plain,"  in  Loudoun  County. 
He  drew  up  his  will  shortly  before  his  death.  Bailey  Wash- 
ington, Jr.,  was  named  one  of  his  executors.  He  describes 
himself  as  "  Thomson  Mason  of  StafTord  County  in  the 
Commonwealth  of  Virginia  Esq. :  **  He  begins  with  the 
usual  solemn  formula,  giving  his  soul  into  the  hands  of  his 
Creator  "  to  dispose  of  as  His  justice  and  mercy  shall  think 
fit,  and  I  humbly  beg,"  adds  the  testator,  "  that  through  the 
merit  and  mediation  of  my  blessed  Redeemer  Jesus  Christ 
the  manifold  sins  I  have  committed  in  this  life  will  be  for- 
given, and  I  declare  that  I  have  lived  and  hope  to  die  in  the 
belief  of  the  Christian  faith."  To  his  widow,  who  was  his 
second  wife,  Thomson  Mason  left  all  the  estate  that  came  to 
him  through  his  marriage  with  her.  She  had  been  a  Miss 
Westwood,  of  Elizabeth  City  County,  and  the  country-seat, 
"  Errol,"  in  that  county,  which  is  mentioned  in  the  will,  was 
probably  her  patrimony.  She  was  the  widow  of  Dr.  Wallace 
at  the  time  of  her  marriage  with  Thomson  Mason.  Mrs. 
Mason  was  to  receive  a  life  estate  in  lands  of  Thomson 
Mason  on  Chappawamic  Run,  in  Stafford  County,  lying 
below  "  lands  of  the  late  Mr.  Moncure "  ;  also  in  another 
plantation  on  the  same  run  in  Prince  William  County,  lying 
below  the  property  of  Col.  Burr  Harrison  and  Robert  Carter, 


76     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON, 

Esq.  There  were  about  twelve  hundred  and  twenty  acres 
in  the  two  tracts,  and  the  testator  reserved  out  of  them  for 
his  son,  John  Thomson  Mason,  his  choice  of  fifty  acres,  "  to 
be  laid  off  in  a  square  for  a  seat,  on  which  side  the  run  he 
pleases,  so  that  it  does  not  include  the  garden,  orchard,  or 
any  of  the  housing  in  the  county  of  Stafford,  or  any  of  the 
low  grounds  in  the  same  county."  John  Thomson  Mason 
was  to  fall  heir  to  this  Stafford  and  Prince  William  property, 
eventually,  with  other  lands  in  the  same  counties,  amounting 
in  all  to  three  thousand  acres.  This  the  third  son  of  Thom- 
son Mason  made  his  home  later  in  Maryland,  where  he 
owned  a  beautiful  country-seat  in  Montgomery  County, 
called  "  Montpelier.**  He  became  an  eminent  lawyer  of 
Maryland.  Stevens  Thomson,  the  eldest  son  of  Thomson 
Mason,  was  confirmed  by  his  father's  will  in  his  possession 
of  "  Raspberry  Plain,"  already  given  him  by  deed,  with  the 
plate  and  furniture  belonging  to  it.  He  was  also  to  have  a 
square  of  four  acres  of  land  on  which  to  build  a  public-house, 
with  certain  unimproved  lots  in  the  towns  of  Richmond  and 
Manchester,  "  which  were  drawn  in  the  late  Colonel  Byrd's 
lottery,  by  tickets  marked  with  the  initials  of  his  mother's  or 
his  brother  George's  name."  Stevens  Thomson  Mason  was 
also  to  have  the  ground  in  Richmond  ''  on  which  the  public 
storehouse  lately  stood,"  together  with  the  money  due  from 
the  public  for  its  valuation,  etc.,  it  having  been  destroyed 
during  Arnold's  raid.  Other  bequests  of  houses,  lots,  etc., 
were  left  to  the  eldest  son.  And  to  the  second  son,  Abram 
Barnes  Thomson,  his  father  also  left  lands  in  Loudoun 
County,  besides  town  lots  drawn  in  Colonel  Byrd's  lottery. 

To  his  only  daughter,  Ann  Thomson  Mason,  her  father 
bequeathed  certain  slaves  and  a  sum  of  money.  She  mar- 
ried Richard  McCarty  Chichester,  son  of  Richard  Chichester, 
of  ^*  Newington,"  and  a  brother  of  Sarah  Chichester,  wife  of 
Thomson  Mason,  of  "  Hollin  Hall."  Mrs.  Mason,  by  her 
husband's  will,  was  to  have  the  household  furniture  at 
"  Errol  "  and  at  "  Chappawamsic,"  with  all  the  stock  at  the 
former  place.     She  was  to  have  also  a  chariot  and  harness 


EXTRACTS  FROM  HIS   WILL.  'Jf 

and  four  chariot  horses  well  matched  ;  also  the  use  of  certain 
slaves,  "  Silvia,"  "  Catina,"  and  others.  A  square  of  one 
hundred  and  fifty  acres  of  land  in  Loudoun  County  was  to  be 
laid  off  in  half-acre  lots  for  a  town,  and  sold  to  the  highest 
bidder  for  a  term  of  twenty-one  years,  with  a  ground  rent  of 
two  silver  dollars  on  each  lot.  The  two  youngest  sons  of 
Thomson  Mason,  the  only  children  of  his  second  marriage, 
were  very  young  at  the  time  of  their  father's  death,  and  in 
the  latter's  will,  after  naming  their  mother  and  two  of  their 
half-brothers  as  their  guardians,  he  gives  the  following  in- 
structions as  to  their  education.  He  desires ''  that  they  may 
be  put  to  learning  English  at  one  of  their  guardian's  houses 
till  eight  years  of  age,  and  that  then  they  be  kept  at  writing, 
arithmetic,  and  reading  elegant  English  authors  and  modem 
languages  till  they  are  twelve  years  of  age,  and  then  to  be 
kept  at  learning  the  Latin  language,  book-keeping,  mathe- 
matics, and  other  useful  branches  of  literature,  till  the  age 
of  eighteen,  and  then  to  be  put  out  to  such  business  or  pro- 
fession as  their  geniuses  are  best  calculated  for.'*  Thomson 
Mason  then  adds  a  caution  against  the  temptations  of  the 
gayer  portion  of  the  State.  "  I  positively  direct,"  he  says, 
"that  neither  of  my  younger  sons,  Westwood  Thomson 
Mason  or  William  Temple  Thomson  Mason,  shall  reside  on 
the  south  side  of  James  River  or  below  Williamsburg  before 
they  respectively  attain  the  age  of  twenty-one  years,  lest 
they  should  imbibe  more  exalted  notions  of  their  own 
importance  than  I  could  wish  any  child  of  mine  to  possess." 
Thomson  Mason  provides  watches  for  each  of  his  children 
by  name,  except  Stevens,  who  it  is  presumed  was  already  in 
possession  of  one.  His  wife  is  to  have  "a  new  gold  watch 
with  an  embossed  case  and  equipage,  suitable  for  a  lady,  of 
the  price  of  thirty  guineas,"  purchased  for  her.  His  own 
gold  watch  is  to  go  to  the  youngest  son.  Ann  Thomson  is 
to  have  the  "  equipage  that  was  her  mother's,"  and  a  gold 
watch  purchased  for  twenty  guineas  to  go  with  it.  The 
three  other  sons  are  to  have  each  a  silver  horizontal  watch. 
John  is  to  have  his  father's  brass  barrelled  pistols. 


78     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

A  faithful  servant  was  rewarded  after  the  following 
manner : 

*'  I  direct  that  my  negro  man  Jack  be  allowed  to  settle  upon 
any  of  my  lands  in  Loudon,  Stafford  or  Prince  William  and  that 
my  executors  lay  off  for  him  thirty  acres  of  good  arable  land  and 
ten  acres  of  pasturage  to  tend  a  crop  for  himself,  build  him  a  bam 
of  logs  twenty  feet  square  and  furnish  him  one  cow,  two  sows, 
one  ewe  and  a  mare  of  ten  pounds  value,  one  bar  share  plow,  one 
Dutch  plow,  one  broad  hoe,  one  narrow  hoe,  one  axe,  one  mat- 
tock, five  bushels  oats,  five  baskets  rye,  five  bushels  of  wheat  and 
ten  barrels  of  corn  to  stock  his  plantation  and  set  him  forward, 
and  let  him  have  one  month's  work  of  an  able  negro  man  and  the 
loan  of  my  ox  cart  for  the  same  time  to  put  his  little  farm  in 
order ;  with  liberty  to  get  rails  and  firewood  off  my  adjacent 
lands." 

In  addition  to  the  farm  and  stock,  his  master  gave  Jack 
the  annual  sum  of  six  pounds  specie.  The  use  of  the  land 
was  given  him  for  life,  the  stock  forever.  He  was  to  be  pro- 
tected in  all  his  just  rights  and  '*  subject  to  the  control  of  no 
person  whatsoever,  and  this  provision  I  have  made  for  him," 
concludes  the  testator, ''  as  a  grateful  acknowledgment  of  the 
remarkable  fidelity  and  integrity  with  which  he  has  con- 
ducted himself  to  me  for  twenty  years  and  upwards."  Jack 
was  to  receive  also  three  hundred-weight  of  pork.  To  his 
wife's  maid,  Catina,  if  ever  she  should  be  parted  from  her 
mistress,  her  master  left  her  two  hundred-weight  of  pork, 
and  certain  articles  of  clothing  annually.  Certain  profits  of 
the  estate  were  to  be  used  "  in  the  purchase  of  white  ser- 
vants, stocks  and  improvements."  Two  "  indented  farming, 
white  servants,"  who  have  four  or  five  years  to  serve,  were 
to  be  purchased  for  one  of  the  testator's  sons,  "  provided 
they  do  not  exceed  the  price  of  thirty  pounds  each."  Thom- 
son Mason,  like  most  of  the  Virginia  planters  of  his  day, 
owned  thorough-bred  horses  and  took  an  interest  in  the  turf. 
In  his  will  he  leaves  to  his  son,  John  Thomson,  his  "  riding 
horse  Rupert,  the  young  St.  George's  mare,  the  two-year-old 


PROTEST  OF  THE  FAIRFAX  JUSTICES.  jg 

sorrel  filly,  her  year-old  Sweeper  horse  colt,  and  Camilla  and 
her  colts."  To  another  son  is  left,  among  less  distinguished 
steeds,  '*  a  bay  Tamerlane  colt,"  and  to  a  third  son  his 
"  Eclipse  bay  horse  colt."  ' 

In  giving  directions  for  his  burial,  Thomson  Mason  makes 
the  one  allusion  to  his  brother  that  is  found  in  his  will.  He 
desires  to  be  buried  at  "  Raspberry  Plain,"  where  his  son 
George  lies,  and  he  wishes  the  remains  of  his  first  wife  to  be 
brought  from  **  the  family  burying-ground  at  my  brother's," 
to  be  laid  beside  his  own. 

George  Mason  must  have  felt  this  loss  keenly.  But  un- 
fortunately no  letters  have  been  preserved  which  allude  to  it. 
And  now,  while  the  work  of  the  younger  brother  was  over, 
the  elder  one  was  to  come  forward  into  the  federal  arena  in  a 
way  that  could  have  been  little  dreamed  of  by  either  of  them 
in  1785.  But  for  two  years  longer  George  Mason  remained 
out  of  the  Assembly.  In  the  meantime  he  was  not  unem- 
ployed. .  Two  months  after  his  brother's  death  we  find  him 
attending  a  meeting  of  the  county  court  of  Fairfax,  at  Alex- 
andria,  on  the  22d  of  March,  and  as  the  presiding  justice, 
drawing  up  a  protest  against  what  he  conceived  to  be  a  vio- 
lation of  the  rights  of  the  court  by  the  executive  : 

**  1785,  March  22.    At  a  court  held  for  the  county  of  Fairfax. 

"  Present: 

**  George  Mason,  John  Gibson, 

Charles  Broadwater,  David  Stuart; 

Alexander  Henderson,  William  Payne, 

George  Gilpin,  (Gentlemen  Justices). 

**  A  new  commission  for  this  county,  signed  by  the  Hon.  Benj. 
Harrison  Esq:  late  Governor  of  this  Commonwealth  being  this 
day  presented  and  read,  whereby  the  Justices  of  the  county  are 
constituted  and  appointed  de  navo^  and  consequently  are  required 
to  take  the  oath  of  qualifications  over  again,  notwithstanding  they 

'  Will  of  Thomson  Mftson  (on  record  at  Stafford  Court  House).  Old  copy 
in  possession  of  Arthur  Mason  Chichester,  Loudoun  County,  Va. 

Volume  ii.  of  Grigsby's  **  Convention  of  1788  *'  ('*  Virginia  Historical  CoUec- 
tions/'  vol.  X.)  contains  sketches  of  Thomson  and  Stevens  Thomson  Mason. 


7 


8o        LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

had  before  taken  them  under  the  commonwealth^  and  several  of 
the  justices  have  been  many  years  acting  magistrates,  by  virtue 
of  former  commissions,  for  this  county.  The  court,  unanimously 
refuse  to  receive,  and  do  protest  against  the  same,  for  the  follow- 
ing reasons  &c. 

"  P.  Wagener,  Clk.  Ct. 

"  A  copy  of  the  protest  to  be  transmitted  to  the  executive." 

The  protest  goes  on  to  state  that  they  object  to  such 
commissions  because  ''of  unnecessary  multiplication  and 
repetition  of  oaths,  rendering  them  common  and  familiar, 
etc.  Because  such  a  commission  would  afford  a  dangerous 
precedent  and  tend  to  renew,  in  this  commonwealth,  one  of 
the  many  abuses  and  arbitrary  practices  of  the  late  monarchi- 
cal government  here,  yielding  to  the  secretary  an  unnecessary 
fee  and  to  the  governor  and  council  an  unjust  and  oppressive 
power  of  insulting  or  turning  any  man  out  of  his  ofBce  of  a 
civil  magistrate,  as  prejudice,  malice,  or  caprice  might  dic- 
tate, without  a  hearing,  or  without  a  cause  of  complaint 
against  him ;  for  the  constituting  and  appointing  the  former 
acting  justices  de  navo^  necessarily  implies  the  power  of 
vacating  the  former  commissions;  that  the  justices  derive 
their  office  entirely  from  the  last,  and  consequently,  that  by 
issuing  a  new  commission,  and  misplacing  any  man  in  it,  he 
might  lose  his  rank,  and  might  be  degraded  from  the  first  to 
the  last  justice  in  the  county ;  or  by  leaving  out  any  justice's 
name  he  would  thenceforward  be  deprived  of  his  office,  both 
of  which,  it  is  notorious,  were  frequently  practised  under  the 
former  government.  Because  it  is  conceived  that  the  exer-\ 
cise  of  such  a  power  is  altogether  illegal,  giving  to  the  execu-l 
tive  power  of  the  State  an  undue  and  dangerous  influence 
over  the  courts  of  justice,  directly  contrary  to  the  Declaration 
of  Rights  and  to  the  fundamental  principles  of  our  free  gov- 
ernment. And  although  this  court  hath  no  cause  to  believe 
that  the  present  commission  was  issued  for  any  such  evil 
purposes,  yet  we  should  think  we  were  deficient  in  the  duty 
we  owe  to  our  country  and  to  posterity,  if  we  suffered  our- 


MEETING  OF  THE  COMMISSIONERS,  8l 

m 

selves  to  become  accessory  to  establishing  a  precedent 
evidently  tending  to  introduce  them,  and  by  renewing  the 
oppressive  maxims  and  practices  of  the  government  from 
which  we  have  so  lately  been  rescued  by  force  of  arms, 
to  sap  the  foundations  of  that  liberty  which  has  been  pur- 
chased at  the  expense  of  so  much  blood  and  treasure." ' 

In  this  same  month  of  March  the  commissioners  met  at 
Alexandria  to  settle  the  jurisdiction  of  the  Chesapeake  Bay 
and  the  Potomac  and  Pokomoke  rivers.  Maryland  had  sug- 
gested the  time  and  place  of  meeting,  and  her  commissioners 
arrived  in  good  season.  By  some  inadvertence,  however, 
the  Virginia  commissioners  were  not  informed  when  and 
where  they  were  to  hold  the  conference,  and  on  this  account 
only  George  Mason  and  Alexander  Henderson  were  able  to 
be  present.  By  invitation  of  General  Washington  the  com- 
missioners adjourned  from  Alexandria  to  "  Mount  Vernon." 
Ten  days  before,  Washington  records  in  his  journal  a  visit  to 
Colonel  Mason  and  some  of  his  neighbors.  Finding  Law- 
rence Lewis,  who  lived  at  "  Woodlawn,"  away  from  home, 
he  proceeded  to  Colonel  Mason's,  where  he  "dined  and 
lodged,"  leaving  "Gunston  Hall"  for  Mr.  Cockburn's,  at 
"Springfield,"  about  twelve  the  next  day.  On  the  20th, 
the  diary  relates : 

"  Major  Jenifer  came  here  to  dinner,  and  my  carriage  went  to 
Gunston  Hall  to  take  Col.  Mason  to  a  meeting  of  commissioners 
at  Alexandria  for  settling  the  jurisdiction  of  Chesapeake  Bay  and 
the  rivers  Potomac  and  Pokomoke  between  the  States  of  Virginia 
and  Maryland.  The  commissioners  on  the  part  of  Virginia  be- 
ing Col.  Mason,  the  Attorney  General,  Mr.  Madison  and  Mr. 
Henderson.  On  that  of  Maryland,  Major  Jenifer,  Thomas  John- 
son, Thomas  Stone  and  Samuel  Chase,  Esqrs."  * 

Two  of  the  Maryland  gentlemen  had  written  to  Geoi^e 
Mason  that  they  would  stop  at  his  house  on  their  way  to 
Alexandria,  and  they  were  very  probably  there  at  this  time. 

'  **  Virginia  Calendar  Papers,"  vol.  iv.,  p.  16. 

'MS.  Joamals,  State  Department. 
Vol.  II.— 6 


» 


82      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON 

On  the  24th,  General  Washington  writes :  "  Sent  my  car- 
riage to  Alexandria  for  Col.  Mason  according  to  appoint- 
ment, who  came  in  about  dusk."  The  next  day,  the 
journal  continues,  about  one  o'clock  Major  Jenifer,  Mn 
Stone,  Mr.  Chase,  and  Mr.  Henderson  arrived  at  "  Mount 
Vernon."  This  was  Friday.  Saturday  and  Monday  the 
commissioners  were  in  session,  and  Tuesday  they  all  left 
for  their  homes.  Colonel  Mason  drove  back  to  "  Gunston 
in  the  "  Mount  Vernon  "  carriage,  "  by  the  return  of  which, 
adds  Washington,  "  he  sent  me  some  young  shoots  of  the 
Persian  jessamine  and  Guelder  rose."  It  is  a  very  meagre 
chronicle,  and  one  cannot  but  wish  that  some  of  the  table- 
talk  at  "  Mount  Vernon  **  during  these  four  days  had  been 
preserved  for  us.  The  commission,  it  will  be  seen,  finished 
their  work  on  the  28th,  having  been  four  days  apparently  at 
Alexandria  and  four  at  "  Mount  Vernon." 

On  the  fifth  of  April  Colonel  Mason  wrote  from  "  Gunston 
Hall"  to  General  Washington,  sending  him  a  present  of 
some  cider.  He  had  broached,  he  says,  four  or  five  hogs- 
heads, and  filled  the  bottles  with  the  best,  though  there  was 
not  much  difference,  "all  being  made  of  Maryland  red 
streak  and  managed  in  the  same  manner."  The  cider  this 
year  is  not  so  clear  and  fine,  he  tells  his  friend,  and  he  does 
not  know  the  reason  except  that  he  had  ground  his  apples 
last  fall  later  than  usual.  And  Colonel  Mason  adds :  "  As 
the  cider  in  bottles  will  not  ripen  for  use  until  late  in  May, 
I  have  also  filled  a  barrell  out  of  the  same,  which  I  beg  your 
acceptance  of."  He  recommends  that  a  little  ginger  should 
be  put  in  it,  as  it  improves  sweet  cider ;  and  he  sends  Wash- 
ington some  watermelon  seed  which  he  had  promised  him.* 
Colonel  Mason,  in  this  letter,  speaks  of  suffering  again  with 
the  gout.  He  had  gone  back  from  the  convention  at "  Mount 
Vernon  "  to  the  pleasant  home  interests  and  occupations,  to 
the  enjoyment  of  the  rural  tastes,  which  he  shared  with  the 
retired  commander-in-chief.  But  in  the  meanwhile  he  was 
preparing  also  to  g^ve  an  kccount  to  the  Assembly  of  the 

*  Washington  MSS..  State  De|>artment. 


LETTER    TO  MADISON.  83 

work  undertaken  by  the  commission.  The  responsibility  of 
its  seeming  irregularity  had  fallen  upon  him,  a  responsibility 
he  would  not  evade,  and  which  he  felt  the  circumstances 
fully  justified  his  assuming.  Joseph  Jones,  however,  only 
expressed  a  surprise  which  was  natural  when  he  wrote  to 
Madison,  June  12th,  of  the  rumor  that  had  reached  him  on 
the  subject.  He  says :  "  I  know  not  whether  any  copy  of  the 
resolution  you  allude  to  has  been  officially  communicated  to 
Mr.  Masoti.  Such  as  Beckley  copied  for  the  executive  have 
been,  so  whether  titat  should  have  been  of  the  number  I  can- 
not tell,  as  we  are  not  yet  favored  with  the  journals  by  the 
printer,  and  I  cannot  inform  myself  at  the  clerk's  office,  Mr. 
Beckley  being  out  of  town."  The  Assembly  now  only  met 
once  a  year,  in  October,  and  the  resolution  referred  to  was 
probably  the  one  passed  at  the  last  session  of  the  House, 
when  new  powers  were  delegated  to  the  commission  ap- 
pointed the  previous  June.  Joseph  Jones  adds:  "I  heard, 
but  have  only  heard,  that  Mason  and  Henderson  proceeded 
to  execute  the  other  branch  of  the  business  committed  to 
the  commissioners  without  the  attendance,  or  call  for  at- 
tendance, of  the  other  commissioners.  What  they  have  done 
has  not  come  to  my  knowledge."  ' 

Madison  had  already  written  on  the  2d  of  June  to  George 
Mason,  probably  making  inquiries  on  the  subject,  and  the 
latter  sent  the  following  letter  of  explanation  in  reply : 

"  GUNSTON  Hall,  August  9th,  1785. 

"Dear  Sir: 

"  I  should  have  answered  your  favor  of  the  second  of  June,  long 
ago,  had  not  ill  health,  and  the  absence  of  my  sons  from  home, 
disabled  me  from  making  out  the  copies  of  the  proceedings  of 
the  Virginia  and  Maryland  Commissioners  which  I  now  enclose, 
and  upon  which  I  wish  to  be  favored  with  your  sentiments. 

"  We  thought  ourselves  unfortunate  in  being  deprived  of  yours 
and  my  friend  the  Attorney's  assistance,  in  this  important  busi- 
ness ;  and  nothing  but  absolute  necessity  should  have  induced 
me  to  enter  upon  it  without  you.     But  the  Maryland  gentlemen 

'  **  letters  of  Joseph  Jones,"  p.  144. 


84     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

would  have  been  much  disgusted  with  a  disappointment,  after 
attending  at  such  a  distance  in  very  bad  weather.  We  waited 
some  days  expecting  your  arrival  in  Alexandria,  when  I  received 
a  letter  from  the  Attorney,  upon  other  business,  without  mention- 
ing a  word  of  the  meeting,  or  of  the  Assembly's  appointment. 
This  convinced  us  that  there  must  have  been  some  blunder  or 
neglect,  in  some  of  the  public  offices,  in  not  giving  the  proper 
notification  to  the  Virginia  Commissioners.  The  Maryland  gentle- 
men declared  that  nothing  had  been  omitted  on  their  part,  that 
they  had  written  an  official  letter  to  the  Virginia  Commissioners 
(addressed  by  their  governor  to  the  commissioners)  proposing 
the  time  and  place,  if  agreeable  to  them  ;  and  if  not,  desiring 
they  would  name  some  other  ;  that  having  received  no  answer, 
they  took  it  for  granted  that  the  time  and  place  was  accepted, 
and  attended  accordingly. 

'*  So  great  has  been  the  neglect  in  some  of  our  public  depart- 
ments that  neither  Mr.  Henderson  or  myself  had  been  furnished 
with  copies  of  the  Assembly's  resolutions.  And  I  should  not  have 
known  that  I  was  one  of  the  persons  appointed,  had  I  not  by  mere 
accident,  two  or  three  days  before  the  meeting,  been  informed  of 
it  by  two  of  the  Maryland  commissioners  writing  to  me  that  they 
should  endeavor  to  take  my  house  in  their  way,  and  go  with  me 
to  Alexandria.  His  Excellency  General  Washington  happened 
to  have  a  copy  of  the  Assembly's  resolutions  respecting  the  ap- 
plication to  be  made  to  the  government  of  Pennsylvania,  which 
he  very  obligingly  gave  me,  by  which  any  tivo  or  more  of  the 
commissioners  were  empowered  to  proceed.  And  it  was  natural 
for  us  to  conclude  that  these  last  resolutions  had  pursued  the 
style  of  the  former  respecting  the  jurisdiction  of  the  two  States  ;  \ 
as  well  as  that  the  subject  had  been  taken  up  upon  the  same  I 
principles  as  in  the  year  1778,  when  commissioners  were  directed  \ 
to  settle  the  jurisdiction  of  the  Chesapeake  Bay  and  the  rivers  \ 
Potomac  and  Pokomoke  *  ;  in  which  sentiments  Mr.  Henderson,  1 
from  what  he  was  able  to  recollect  of  the  resolutions,  concurred.    J 

''  Thus  disagreeably  circumstanced,  only  two  of  the  Virginia  | 
commissioners  present,  and  without  any  copy  of  the  resolves  upon  i 
the  principal  subject,  we  thought  it  better  to  proceed  than  to  dis-    1 

^  George  Mftson,  Thomas  Ludwell  I.«e,  and  James  Henry  were  the  Virginia 
commissioners  appointed,  1778. 


MARYLANjyS  SINE  QUA   NON.  8$ 

appoint  the  Maryland  commissioners  ;  who  appeared  to  have 
brought  with  them  the  most  amicable  dispositions,  and  expressed 
the  greatest  desire  of  forming  such  a  fair  and  liberal  compact,  as 
might  prove  a  lasting  cement  of  friendship  between  the  two 
States  ;  which  we  were  convinced  it  is  their  mutual  interest 
to  cultivate.  We  therefore  upon  the  particular  invitation  of  the 
General  adjourned  to  '  Mount  Vernon  *  and  finished  the  business 
there.  Some  time  after,  Mr.  Henderson  wrote  to  Mr.  Beckley 
(clerk  of  the  House  of  Delegates)  for  a  copy  of  the  resolves ; 
upon  receiving  which  we  were  surprised  to  find  no  mention  made 
of  Chesapeake  or  Pokomoke  River^  that  our  powers  were  confined 
to  Potomac  River ^  and  to  not  less  than  three  of  the  commissioners. 
I  am  still  inclined  to  think  that  the  omission  of  Chesapeake  Bay 
and  Pokomoke  River  was  owing  to  a  mistake  or  inadvertence,  in 
not  attending  to  the  resolves  of  1778  ;  and,  if  so,  it  was  perhaps 
lucky  that  we  had  not  been  furnished  with  a  copy  of  the  resolves ; 
for  the  Maryland  commissioners  had  an  express  instruction  from 
their  Assembly  to  consider  the  relinquishment,  on  the  part  of  Vir- 
ginia, of  any  claim  of  laying  tolls,  &c.,  on  vessels  passing  through 
the  capes  of  Chesapeake  as  a  sine  qua  non  ;  and  if  it  was  refused 
immediately  to  break  off  all  further  conference  with  the  Virginia 
commissioners. 

"  This  blundering  business,  however,  will  give  me  the  trouble 
and  expence  of  a  journey  to  Richmond,  next  session,  to  apologize 
for  and  explain  our  conduct ;  where,  if  the  substance  of  the  com- 
pact is  approved  by  the  Assembly,  I  hope  forms  will  be  dispensed 
with,  especially  as  the  breach  of  them  has  been  the  fault  of  some 
of  their  own  ofhcers,  not  ours,  and  as  I  am  conscious  of  our  hav- 
ing been  influenced  by  no  other  motives  than  the  desire  of 
promoting  the  public  good."  ' 

With  this  letter  George  Mason  sent  to  Madison  drafts  of 
the  communication  of  the  Virginia  commissioners  to  the  As- 
sembly,  stating  briefly  the  points  that  had  been  settled ;  and 
also  the  letter  to  the  president  of  the  Executive  Council  of 
Pennsylvania  from  the  commission  on  the  subject  of  co- 
operation with  Virginia  and  Maryland.*  The  following 
memorandum  was  added  as  a  postscript  to  the  letter  to 

'  Madison  MSS..  State  Department.  'Appendix  i. 


86     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDEfiCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

Madison.  The  suggested  correction  or  alteration  in  the 
compact  was  not  made,  however,  as  may  be  seen  by  refer- 
ence to  the  law  in  the  Virginia  and  Maryland  codes. 

"  Memorandum,  The  concluding  clause  of  the  seventh  article 
of  the  compact  is  not  so  clearly  expressed  as  it  ought  to  be,  and 
is  capable  of  a  construction  which  was  not  intended  ;  and  though 
it  would  be  a  strained  and  unnatural  one,  it  had  better  be  re- 
moved. The  words  are  *  provided,  &c.,  and  that  the  citizens  of 
neither  State  shall  have  a  right  to  fish  with  nets  or  seins  upon  the 
shores  of  the  other.'  This  may  be  construed  to  restrain  the  citi- 
zens of  either  State,  having  lands  upon  the  river  in  the  other, 
from  fishing  with  nets  or  seins  upon  their  own  shores ;  which 
would  be  unreasonable  and  unjust ;  although  in  its  present  form, 
it  seems  to  be  the  grammatical  construction.  The  addition  of 
two  or  three  words  will  set  it  right — thus  :  '  And  that  the  citizens 
of  neither  State  shall  have  a  right  to  fish  with  nets  or  seins  upon 
the  shores  of  the  citizens  of  the  other.'  I  never  observed  this  cir- 
cumstance till  very  lately,  or  I  am  sure  I  could  easily  have  had  it 
altered  by  the  Maryland  commissioners,  at  any  time  before  the 
meeting  of  their  Assembly.  The  fisheries  upon  Potomac  River 
are  becoming  a  very  important  object,  and  therefore  I  could  wish 
the  above  clause  in  the  compact  properly  amended.  If  the 
amendment  goes  no  farther  than  I  have  mentioned,  it  will  occa- 
sion no  objection  from  Maryland,  and  I  wish  the  article  to  be  no 
otherwise  altered,  for  this  was  the  most  difficult  business  we  had 
to  settle  with  the  Maryland  commissioners.  The  idea  of  the 
right  of  fishing  on  both  shores  of  Potomac  River  is  one  the 
Marylanders  are  not  fond  of  parting  with  ;  and  I  trust  it  will  be 
found  we  have  obtained  everything  for  Virginia,  with  respect  to 
Potomac  River,  which  she  can  desire.  The  exceptionable  part 
of  the  article  before  mentioned  was  really  a  mistake.  Not  hav- 
ing time  now  to  write  to  my  friend  the  Attorney  upon  this 
subject,  Mr.  Madison  will  be  pleased  to  mention  it  to  him. 

"And  I  shall  be  particularly  obliged  to  Mr.  Madison  to  inform 
me  what  is  done  with  respect  to  the  Northern  Neck,  on  the  sub- 
ject of  the  records  in  the  late  proprietor's  office,  entering,  or 

resurveying  lands,  quit-rents,  &:c. 

"  G.  M." 


REUGIOUS  ASSESSMENT  CONTROVERSY.  87 

Another  subject  which  interested  George  Mason  at  this 
time  was  the  Assessment  Bill.  Its  fate  was  to  be  decided  at 
the  next  session  of  the  Assembly,  and  so  energetically  did 
its  enemies  work  against  it,  its  rejection  was  readily  secured. 
To  George  Mason,  in  great  part,  this  success  was  due. 
Madison,  in  a  letter  to  one  of  Colonel  Mason's  grandsons, 
written  in  1826,  gives  the  following  account  of  the  matter: 

''  During  the  session  of  the  General  Assembly,  1784-5,  a  bill 
was  introduced  into  the  House  of  Delegates,  providing  for  the 
legal  support  of  Teachers  of  the  Christian  Religion,  and  being 
patronized  by  the  most  popular  talents  in  the  House,  seemed 
likely  .to  obtain  a  majority  of  votes.  In  order  to  arrest  its 
progress,  it  was  insisted  with  success,  that  the  bill  should  be 
postpK>ned  till  the  ensuing  session ;  and  in  the  meantime  be 
printed  for  public  consideration.  That  the  sense  of  the  people 
might  be  better  called  forth,  your  highly  distinguished  ancestor. 
Col.  George  Mason,  Col.  George  Nicholas,  also  possessing 
much  public  weight,  and  some  others  thought  it  advisable  that 
a  remonstrance  against  the  bill  should  be  prepared  for  general 
circulation  and  signature,  and  imposed  on  me  the  task  of  draw- 
ing up  such  a  paper.  The  draught  having  received  their  sanction, 
a  large  number  of  printed  copies  were  distributed,  and  so  exten- 
sively signed  by  the  people  of  every  religious  denomination,  that  at 
the  ensuing  session  the  projected  measure  was  entirely  frustrated, 
and  under  the  influence  of  the  public  sentiment  thus  manifested 
the  celebrated  bill  '  Establishing  Religious  Freedom '  created 
into  a  permanent  barrier  against  future  attempts  on  the  rights  of 
conscience,  as  declared  in  the  great  charter  prefixed  to  the  Con- 
stitution of  the  State." ' 

The  fact  of  Madison's  authorship  of  the  "  Remonstrance  " 
was  not  generally  known  until  after  his  death,  and  there 
were  some  persons  in  Virginia  who  attributed  it  to  George 
Mason.*  Colonel  Mason  probably  wrote  to  a  number  of  his 
friends  enclosing  them  this  paper  for  signature,  and  two  of 

'  MS.  Letter.     Compare  Rives*  "  Madison/'  vol.  i.,  p.  631, 
'  Oration  of  Mr.  Williams  on  the  death  of  Madison. 


88      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE   OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

these  letters,  written,  the  first  part  of  them,  in  identical 
terms,  one  to  General  Washington  and  one  to  Robert  Carter 
of  "  Nomini,"  are  preserved.  The  letter  to  Washington  is 
as  follows : 

GuNSTON  Hall,  October  2d,  1785. 

Dear  Sir  : 

I  take  the  liberty  of  enclosing  you  a  Memorial  and  Remon- 
strance to  the  General  Assembly,  confided  to  me  by  a  particular 
friend  whose  name  I  am  not  at  liberty  to  mention ;  and  as  the 
principles  it  avows  entirely  accord  with  my  sentiments  on  the 
subject  (which  is  a  very  important  one),  I  have  been  at  the 
charge  of  printing  several  copies  to  disperse  in  the  different 
parts  of  the  country.  You  will  easily  perceive  that  all  manner  of 
declamation  and  address  to  passions  have  been  avoided,  as  unfair 
in  themselves,  and  improper  for  such  a  subject ;  and  although 
the  Remonstrance  is  long,  that  brevity  has  been  aimed  at,  but  the 
field  is  extensive. 

If  upon  consideration,  you  approve  the  arguments  and  the 
principles  upon  which  they  are  founded,  your  signature  will  both 
give  the  Remonstrance  weight,  and  do  it  honor.  I  would  have 
waited  on  you  personally  upon  this  occasion,  but  have  been  so 
shattered  by  a  late  violent  fit  of  the  convulsive  cholic,  com- 
plicated with  the  gout  in  my  stomach,  that  I  am  hardly  able  to 
walk  across  the  floor.  The  bearer  will  deliver  you  a  packet 
inclosing  another  copy  for  my  friend  Doctor  Stuart.  I  am  in 
hopes  he  and  his  colleague  will  endeavor  to  forward  the  sub- 
scriptions in  this  county.  Mrs.  Mason,  and  the  family  here,  pre- 
sent their  compliments  to  you,  your  lady  and  Miss  Bassett,  with. 

Dear  Sir, 
Your  afifectionate  and  obedient  servant, 

G.  Mason.* 

In  the  letter  to  Robert  Carter,  George  Mason  says : 

''  If  upon  consideration  you  approve  the  reasoning  and  the 
principles  upon  which  it  is  founded,  I  make  no  doubt  you  will 
endeavor  to  promote  the  subscriptions  in  your  part  of  the 
country ;    if  they   can  be   completed,   and   the   Remonstrance 

'  Washington  MSS.»  SUte  Department. 


CORRESPONDENCE  ON   THE  SUBJECT,  89 

sent  down   to   the  Assembly,  by  the  first  or  second  week  in 
November,  I  presume  it  will  be  in  good  time." ' 

Washington  wrote  in  reply  to  Colonel  Mason : 
j^         q  Mount  Vernon,  October  3d,  1785. 

I  have  this  moment  received  yours  of  yesterday's  date,  enclos- 
ing a  memorial  and  remonstrance  against  the  Assessment  Bill, 
which  I  will  read  with  attention.  At  present  I  am  unable  to  do 
it,  on  account  of  company.  The  bill  itself  I  do  not  recollect 
ever  to  have  read  ;  with  attention  I  am  certain  I  never  did,  but 
will  compare  them  together. 

Although  no  man's  sentiments  are  more  opposed  to  any  kind 
of  restraint  upon  religious  principles  than  mine  are,  yet  I  must 
confess,  that  I  am  not  amongst  the  number  of  those,  who  are  so 
much  alarmed  at  the  thoughts  of  making  people  pay  towards  the 
support  of  that  which  they  profess,  if  of  the  denomination 
of  Christians,  or  declare  themselves  Jews,  Mahometans,  or  other- 
wise, and  thereby  obtain  proper  relief.  As  the  matter  now 
stands,  I  wish  an  assessment  had  never  been  agitated,  and  as  it 
has  gone  so  far,  that  the  bill  could  die  an  easy  death  ;  because  I 
think  it  will  be  productive  of  more  quiet  to  the  State,  than  by 
enacting  it  into  a  law,  which  in  my  opinion  would  be  impolitic 
admitting  there  is  a  decided  majority  for  it,  to  the  disquiet  of  a 
respectable  minority.  In  the  former  case,  the  matter  will  soon 
subside ;  in  the  latter,  it  will  rankle  and  perhaps  convulse  the 
State.  The  dinner  bell  rings,  and  I  must  conclude  with  an 
expression  of  my  concern  for  your  indisposition. 

Sincerely  and  affectionately,  I  am,  &:c.* 

Councillor  Carter's  answer  to  George  Mason  was  a  more 
emphatic  condemnation  of  the  proposed  law.  He  wrote 
from  "  Nomony  Hall,"  October  15,  1785 : 

"  Sir  : 

''  Your  favor  inclosing  a  copy  of  a  Remonstrance  and  Memo- 
rial against  a  bill  for  establishing  a  provision  for  teachers  of  the 
Christian  religion  was  put  into  my  hands  this  day.     The  violence 

'  MS.  Letter. 

•  "Writings  of  Washington,"  Sparks,  vol.  xii..  Appendix,  p.  404. 


90      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

offered  therein  to  the  Declaration  of  Rights  and  the  presumptu- 
ous aid  intended  to  Christ's  visible  church  below,  were  very 
alarming — and  in  the  month  of  last  June  I  joined  some  persons 
in  the  lower  counties  in  this  neck  in  offering  to  the  people,  there, 
a  petition  addressed  to  the  General  Assembly  noting  therein  some 
reasons  against  the  bill  and  praying  that  it  might  be  rejected.  I 
fully  intend  to  present  to  the  people  to-morrow  the  Remonstrance 
and  Memorial." ' 

Many  of  the  Virginia  statesmen,  however,  still  clung  to  the 
principle  of  some  compulsory  law  for  the  support  of  religion. 
,  Edmund  Randolph,  Patrick  Henry,  Richard  Henry  Lee,  and 
John  Page  of  "  Rosewell,"  afterwards  Governor  of  Virginia, 
all  of  them  members  of  the  Church  of  England,  favored  an 
assessment  by  the  State  for  this  purpose.  John  Page  wrote 
to  Jefferson  in  August,  1785  :  "  We  have  endeavored  eight 
years  in  vain  to  support  the  rational  sects  by  voluntary  con- 
tributions." And  the  clergy  of  the  former  establishment 
were  many  of  them  without  the  means  of  remaining  in  their 
parishes.  Yet  churchmen  such  as  George  Mason,  Madison, 
and  George  Nicholas  looked  beyond  the  exigencies  of  the 
hour,  and  were  ready  to  sacrifice  present  convenience  for  the 
sake  of  the  principle  involved.  And  theirs,  which  was  the 
religion  of  a  majority  of  the  landed  gentry,  was,  of  course, 
the  "  rational  sect "  which  suffered  most  from  the  new  order 
of  things. 

Colonel  Mason  wrote  to  Washingfton  early  in  November, 
making  reference  to  the  proceedings  of  the  Assembly  then 
in  session : 

GuNSTON  II ALL,  Qth  Novcmbcr,  1785. 

Dear  Sir  : 

The  bearer  waits  on  you  with  a  side  of  venison  (the  first  we 
have  killed  this  season),  which  I  beg  your  acceptance  of. 

I  have  heard  nothing  from  the  Assembly  except  vague  reports 
of  their  being  resolved  to  issue  a  paper  currency  ;  upon  what 
principles  or  funds  I  know  not ;  perhaps  upon  the  old  threadbare 
security  of  pledging  solemnly  the  public  credit.     I  believe  such 

*  Carter  letter-Books. 


LETTER   TO    WASHINGTON.  9 1 

an  experiment  would  prove  similar  to  the  old  vulgar  adage  of 
carrying  a  horse  to  the  water.  They  may  pass  a  law  to  issue  it, 
but  twenty  laws  will  not  make  people  receive  it. 

I  intended  to  go  down  to  Richmond  about  the  fifteenth  of  the 
month  to  have  reported  the  compact  with  the  Maryland  commis- 
sioners, but  I  have  lately  had  so  severe  a  fit  of  the  convulsive 
colic,  or  the  gout,  in  my  stomach,  that  I  dare  not  venture  far 
from  home  ;  it  held  me  from  Sunday  evening  till  Tuesday  morn- 
ing, and  has  left  me  so  weak  that  I  am  hardly  able  to  walk  across 
the  floor. 

We  hope  to  hear  that  you,  your  lady,  and  family  are  well ;  to 
whom  Mrs.  Mason  and  the  family  here  present  their  best  compli- 
ments, with  those  of,  dear  sir, 

Your  affectionate  and  obedient  servant 

G.  Mason.' 

Washington,  in  his  diary,  records  a  visit  made  to  Colonel 
Mason  on  the  25th  of  this  month.  He  writes :  "  Set  out 
after  breakfast,  accompanied  by  Mr.  G.  Washingfton  to  make 
Mr.  Mason  at  Colchester  a  visit,  but  hearing  on  the  road  that 
he  had  removed  from  there  I  turned  in  to  Gunston  Hall 
where  we  dined  and  returned  in  the  evening."  *  The  two 
friends  doubtless  discussed  Assembly  affairs,  the  Assessment 
Bill,  the  paper-money  question,  the  commercial  compact  with 
Maryland,  etc. 

Madison  had  visited  **  Mount  Vernon  "  early  in  Septem- 
ber and  also  on  the  12th  of  October,  staying  until  the  14th, 
as  we  learn  from  Washingfton's  diary.  And  it  was  probably 
on  the  latter  occasion  that  he  went  also  to  "  Gunston  Hall." 
The  constant  attacks  of  illness,  of  which  Colonel  Mason 
makes  mention  in  his  letters  at  this  time,  had  prevented  him 
from  going  to  Richmond  with  the  report  of  the  commission, 
which  he  wished  to  lay  before  the  Assembly,  so  he  was 
obliged  to  send  it  in  a  letter  to  the  Speaker  of  the  House. 
He  wrote,  about  the  same  time,  to  Madison : 

»  Washington  MSS.,  State  Department.     Bancroft^  "  History  of  the  Consti- 
tution/' vol.  i.,  Appendix,  p.  468. 
'  MS.  Journals,  Toner  Transcripts. 


92      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

GuNSTON  Hall,  December  7th,  1785. 
Dear  Sir  : 

I  have  had  such  frequent  fits  of  the  convulsive  colic,  compli- 
cated with  the  gout  in  the  stomach,  since  you  were  here,  that  I 
dare  not  undertake  a  journey  to  Richmond  ;  and  therefore,  after 
putting  it  off  as  long  as  I  well  could,  in  hopes  of  recovering  such 
health  as  would  permit  me  to  present  the  compact  with  the  State 
of  Maryland,  in  person,  I  have  now  inclosed  it  in  a  letter  to  the 
Speaker.  I  incurred  a  small  expense  of  ^3  15  9,  in  waiting 
three  or  four  days  in  Alexandria  for  the  Maryland  commissioners  ; 
which  the  Assembly  may  repay  me  if  they  please,  otherwise  I  am 
very  well  satisfied  without  it.  I  also  incurred  an  expense  equal 
to  about  ^5  in  specie,  attending  the  committee  upon  the  revisal 
of  the  laws  in  Fredericksburg,  and  about  double  that  sum  in 
Williamsburg,  at  different  times,  after  the  sessions  of  Assembly 
ended,  in  collecting  evidence,  and  cross  examining  witnesses  be- 
tween the  Commonwealth  and  Colonel  Richard  Henderson,  in 
the  cause  which  I  was  directed  to  manage,  by  a  vote  of  both 
Houses  ;  but  I  never  made  any  particular  account  of  it. 

I  must  intreat  you,  if  you  find  it  necessary,  to  make  my  apology 
to  the  Assembly  for  having  rather  exceeded  our  authority.  I  gave 
you  the  reasons  in  a  former  letter,  soon  after  the  meeting  of  the 
commissioners ;  but  least  you  should  not  recollect  them,  I  will 
repeat  them.  .  .  .  My  paper  draws  to  an  end,  and  leaves  me 
only  room  to  beg  your  attention  to  the  inclosed  memorandum,  to 
express  my  desire  of  hearing  from  you  on  the  subject  of  the  com- 
pact, and  such  other  public  matters  as  you  may  have  time  to  com- 
municate, as  soon  as  convenience  will  permit ;  and  to  assure  you 
that  I  am  with  the  most  sincere  esteem  and  regard. 

Dear  sir. 
Your  affectionate  friend  and  obedient  servant, 

G.  Mason.' 

On  the  13th  of  December  the  Speaker  laid  before  the 
House  a  letter  from  George  Mason,  Esq.,  enclosing  the  pro- 
ceedings of  the  commissioners  on  the  compact  between  the 
States  of  Virginia  and  Maryland  respecting  the  jurisdiction 
and  navigation  of  the  rivers  Potomac  and  Pokomoke ;  which 

*  Madison  MSS.,  State  Department. 


I 


THE  ANNAPOLIS  CONVENTION.  93 

were  read  and  referred  to  the  Committee  on  Commerce,  and, 
on  the  30th,  the  bill  to  ratify  the  compact  passed  the  House.' 
The  compact  consisted  of  a  dozen  articles  on  the  jurisdiction 
of  the  Chesapeake  Bay  and  the  two  rivers  mentioned,  cover- 
ing the  items  of  tolls,  Asheries,  lighthouses,  buoys,  piracies, 
etc.  And  the  letter  to  the  Speaker  from  the  Virginia  com- 
missioners opened  up  other  and  wider  views  of  the  commis- 
sion :  such  as  the  regulation  of  gold  and  silver  money  passing 
current  in  the  two  States,  bills  of  exchange,  etc.,  duties  on 
imports  or  exports,  which  it  was  proposed  should  be  settled 
by  an  annual  commission,  appointed  by  the  leg^islatures  of 
the  two  States,  the  number  of  the  commissioners  to  be  not 
less  than  three  or  more  than  five  from  each  State.  The 
conference  at  "  Mount  Vernon,"  as  it  proved,  was  the  first 
step  in  the  direction  of  a  new  federal  government.  Mary- 
land, in  ratifying  the  compact  and  supplementary  report  of 
the  commission,  proposed  that  Pennsylvania  and  Delaware 
should  be  invited  to  unite  in  the  same  commercial  system. 
The  Virginia  legislature  went  still  further.  On  the  21st  of 
January,  1786,  at  the  close  of  the  session,  the  following 
resolution  passed  the  House : 

''That   Edmund   Randolph,   James   Madison,  Walter  Jones, 
St.  George  Tucker,  and  Meriwether  Smith  be  appointed  com-j 
missioners,  who,  or  any  of  them,  shall  meet  such  commissioners; 
as  may  be  appointed  by  the  other  States  of  the  Union  at  a  time: 
and  place  to  be  agreed  on,  to  take  into  consideration  the  trade  of  \ 
the  United  States  ;  to  examine  the  relative  situations  and  trade 
of  the  said  States  ;  to  consider  how  far  a  uniform  system  in  their ' 
commercial  regulations  may  be  necessary  to  their  common  inter- 
est and  their  permanent  harmony  ;  and  to  report  to  the  several 
States,  such  an  act  relative  to  this  great  object  as,  when  unani-! 
mously  ratified  by  them,  will  enable  the  United  States  in  Congress 
effectually  to  provide  for  the  same."  * 

'  Journal  of  the  Assembly.     This  letter  of  George  Mason  to  the  Speaker, 
etc.  (as  in  the  Madison  MSS.),  is  in  the  State  Library,  Richmond. 
*  Journal  of  the  Assembly. 


94      ^^^^  ^^^  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON, 

At  first  only  three  commissioners  were  named,  Tucker 
and  Smith  were  then  added  by  the  House,  and  when  the 
resolution  was  sent  to  the  Senate  it  was  amended  by  the 
addition  of  three  others — George  Mason,  William  Ronald, 
and  David  Ross.  Ronald's  name  was  struck  out  at  his  own 
desire,  but  the  rest  stood.  Madison  thought  that  there  were 
too  many,  and  that  the  multitude  of  associates  would  "  stifle 
the  thing  in  its  birth  and  was  probably  meant  to  do  so." ' 

There  had  been  much  excitement  in  the  Assembly  over 
the  question  of  regulating  trade ;  on  the  one  hand,  lest  the 
power  of  the  States  should  be  abridged,  and,  on  the  other, 
lest  the  power  of  Congress  should  be  inadequate  to  the  pur- 
poses for  which  the  Union   had  been  formed.     Mr.  Tyler 
introduced   the  proposition   of  a  convention   at    the  last 
moment,   having  vainly  sought  an  earlier  opportunity  to 
eflfect  his  object.    To  invest  Congress  with  the  means  of 
regulating  commerce,   and    yet    insure   certain   qualifying 
clauses,  it  was  thought  would  satisfy  both  the  friends  of. 
Congress  and  the  upholders  of  the   rights  of  the  States,  j 
Colonel  Mason's  opinions  on  the  subject  were  not  clearly  I 
known.     It  was  suspected  that  he  was  adverse  to  a  stronger  > 
Union,  and  those  who  favored  it  desired  to  obtain  an  influ- 
ence so  important.     Monroe  wrote  to  Madison  from  New 
York,  where  Congress  was  in  session,  on  the  3d  of  Septem- 
ber :    "  I  consider  the  convention  of  Annapolis  as  a  most 
important  era  in  our  affairs.     .     .     .     Prevail,  I  beg  of  you, 
on  Colonel  Mason  to  attend  the  convention.     It  will  give 
him  data  to  act  on  afterward  in  the  State." '     The  convene 
tion  met  on  the  nth  of  September,  1786,  but  George  Masonl 
did  not  attend,  doubtless  on  account  of  the  attacks  of  gout,  \ 
from  which  he  still  suffered.     Commissioners  were  present  \ 
from  four  States  only — New  York,  New  Jersey,  Pcnnsyl-  1 
vania,   and   Virginia.     Edmund    Randolph,    Madison,   and   I 
St.    George   Tucker    were    the    three    delegates    who    at- 

'  '*  Writings  of  Madison/'  vol.  i.,  p.  317.     The  names  do  not  appear  in  the 
printed  journal  of  the  Senate. 
•  Rives'  "  Life  of  Madison."  vol.  ii.,  p.  123. 


FREE  NAVIGATION  OF  THE  MISSISSIPPI.  95 

- —  ■   ■    -    —  ■  -  .  ■ 

tended  from  Virginia.     The  convention  adjourned  on  the 
I4thy   proposing  that  all  the  States  should   meet   in  the ' 
following  May  at  Philadelphia  "  to  render  the  Constitution 
adequate  to  the  exigencies  oif  the  Union."  ,' 

Monroe  was  uneasy  at  this  time  concerning  the  projects 
of  Jay  and  his  party.  He  saw  in  them  an  attempt  to  break 
up  the  Union,  and  he  wrote  to  the  prominent  men  in  Vir- 
ginia to  ascertain  and  influence  their  views  on  the  subject. 
In  a  letter  to  Madison  of  the  29th  of  September,  he  says : 

"I  wrote  some  weeks  since  to  Colonel  Mason  upon  this 
subject,  at  the  time  I  wrote  Governor  Henry,  but  have  received 
no  answer  from  him,  from  which  circumstance,  as  well  as  that 
of  R.  H.  Lee*s  being  in  the  opposite  sentiment,  there  is  room  to 
conjecture  he  is  not  with  us."  * 

It  was  generally  taken  for  granted,  it  seems,  that  Lee  and 
Mason  would  concur  in  their  political  views.  General  Henry 
Lee,  who  was  in  Congress  at  this  time,  also  wrote  to  General 
Washington,  incidentally  giving  his  testimony  to  the  con- 
sideration in  which  George  Mason  was  held,  and  the  desire 
that  was  felt  to  bring  him  back  into  public  life.  In  regard 
to  the  navigation  of  the  Mississippi,  which  Spain,  in  the  pro- 
jected treaty  with  her  Jay  was  negotiating,  proposed  to  close 
to  the  United  States  for  thirty  years,  he  says :  "  Should  this 
matter  come  before  our  Assembly,  much  will  depend  on  Mr. 
Mason*s  sentiments."     And  Washington  replies  on  the  31st : 

"Colonel  Mason  is  at  present  in  a  fit  of  the  gout.  What 
his  sentiments  on  the  subject  are,  I  know  not,  nor  whether  he 
will  be  able  to  attend  the  Assembly  during  the  present  session. 
For  some  reasons,  however,  which  need  not  be  mentioned,  I  am 
inclined  to  believe  he  will  advocate  the  navigation  of  that  river."' 

There  was  another  subject  on  which  much  was  expected 
from  George   Mason  ;   this  was   the   question   of   emitting 

*  Buncroft's  "  History  of  the  Constitution,"  vol.  ii.,  p.  397. 
'"Correspondence  of  the  American  Revolution,"  Sparks,  vol.  Iv.,  p.  140; 
••  Writings  of  Washington,'*  Sparks,  vol.  ix.,  p.  205. 


96     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

paper  money.  And  on  the  12th  of  August  Madison  had 
written  to  Jefferson,  referring  to  the  action  of  the  several 
States  who  advocated  the  measure :  "  Whether  Vii^inia  is  to 
remain  exempt  from  the  epidemic  malady,  will  depend  on 
the  ensuing  Assembly.  My  hopes  rest  chiefly  on  the  exer- 
tions of  Colonel  Mason,  and  the  failure  of  the  experiment 
ekewhere."*  Bancroft  says  that  aided  by  an  unfavorable 
balance  of  trade  and  the  burden  of  heavy  taxation,  an  effort, 
it  was  known,  would  be  made  by  Meriwether  Smith  and 
others  to  issue  a  paper  medium  in  1786:  ''Aware  of  the 
danger,  Washington  insisted  that  George  Mason  should  be 
a  candidate  for  the  Assembly;  and  his  election  proved 
a  counterpoise  to  the  public  cry."  *  Colonel  Mason  had  not 
consented  to  serve  again  in  the  Assembly,  but  the  honor 
was  forced  upon  him ;  and  Washington,  in  his  journal  of 
April  17,  1786,  speaks  of  going  "up  to  Alexandria  to  an 
election  of  delegates  to  represent  the  county,  Colo.  Mason 
and  Doctr.  Stuart  elected."  And  he  adds,  the  "suffrages 
of  the  people  fell  upon  the  first  contrary  to,  and  aft,er 
he  had  declared  he  could  not  serve,  and  on  the  other 
whilst  he  was  absent  at  Richmond.  Capt.  West  .who 
had  offered  his  services  and  was  present  was  rejected. 
The  votes  were,  for  Col.  Mason  109,  for  Dr.  Stuart  105, 
and  for  Capt.  West  84." "  George  Mason's  health  did  not 
permit  him  to  attend  at  this  year's  session  of  the  Assembly, 
but  he  was  present  the  following  October.  The  question  of 
paper  money  was  brought  up  1786-7,  and  was  defeated  ; 
its  emission  was  denounced  as  "  unjust,  impolitic,  and  de- 
structive of  public  confidence,  and  of  that  virtue  which  is  the 
basis  of  republican  government."  *  George  Nicholas  headed 
the  long  list  of  those  who  voted  in  favor  of  this  resolution, 
and  doubtless  George  Mason's  influence  was  felt  here,  as  in 
the  assessment  controversy,  though  he  was  not  present.   On 

'  **  Writings  of  Madison/'  vol.  i.,  p.  345. 
•  **  History  of  the  Constitution,"  vol.  i.,  p.  338. 
'  Washington's  MS.  Journals.     Toner  Transcripts. 
^  Journal  of  the  Assembly. 


APPOINTED  A  DELEGATE   TO  PHILADELPHIA.        97 

the  4th  of  December,  1786,  the  Assembly  appointed  seven  ^ 
deputies  to  the  convention  in  Pennsylvania,  George  Wash- 
ington, Patrick  Henry,  Edmund  Randolph,  John  Blair, 
James  Madison,  George  Mason,  and  George  Wythe.*  Pat- 
rick Henry  declined  the  appointment,  and  James  McClurg 
was  nominated  in  his  place. 

But  one  letter  of  George  Mason's,  written  in  1786,  has 
been  preserved.  This  was  addressed  to  "Col.  John  Fitz- 
gerald, Merchant  in  Alexandria."  It  is  on  the  subject  of 
Colonel  Mason's  tobacco  shipments  to  Bordeaux,  where  he 
hears  of  the  failure  of  a  certain  house  to  which  his  consign- 
ments had  been  sent:  "  I  should  think,"  he  writes,  "it  will 
be  proper  for  me,  without  loss  of  time,  to  write  to  some 
merchant  of  credit  in  Bordeaux,  authorizing  him  to  take 
possession  of  the  tobacco  and  sell  it  on  my  account,  for 
which  purpose  perhaps  a  power  of  attorney  from  me  may 
be  necessary  in  case  the  authority  merely  of  a  letter  should 
be  disputed.  Mercantile  transactions  are  so  out  of  my  line 
of  life  that  I  am  really  at  a  loss  how  to  proceed,  and  shall 
be  obliged  to  you  for  your  advice."* 

The  year  1787  was  to  bring  George  Mason  out  of  his 
retirement  into  a  wider  field  of  action  than  he  had  ever  r 
before  entered.  He  had  come  forward  at  the  call  of  his 
State  to  serve  in  the  Federal  Convention,  a  council  to  which 
all  were*  now  anxiously  looking  as  the  final  effort  to  amend 
the  Union.  It  was  to  meet  in  Philadelphia  in  May.  Madi-  ; 
son,  who  was  an  ardent  advocate  of  a  stronger  federal  gov- 
ernment, wrote  from  Congress  to  Jefferson  on  the  23d  of 
April : 

*'  The  prospect  of  a  full  and  respectable  convention  grows 
stronger  every  day.  .  .  .  Our  Governor,  Mr.  Wythe,  Mr. 
Blair,  and  Col.  Mason  will  pretty  certainly  attend.  The  last, 
I  am  informed,  is  renouncing  his  errors  on  the  subject  of  the 
confederation,  and  means  to  take  an  active  part  in  the  amend- 
ment of  it." 

'  Journal  of  the  Assembly.  '  MS.  Letter. 

Vol.  II.— 7 


98      UFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

Colonel  Mason's  "  errors,"  in  the  eyes  of  Madison,  con- 
sisted undoubtedly  in  his  wholesome  fears  of  drawing  too 
tight  the  bonds  of  union.  With  Patrick  Henry  and  Richard 
jHenry  Lee  he  was  jealous  of  unnecessary  encroachments  on 
the  sovereignty  of  Virginia.  Edmund  Randolph,  then  gov- 
ernor, was  at  this  time  of  the  same  party.  The  following 
letters  were  written  to  Edmund  Randolph  in  reply  to  the 
latter,  who  had  given  Colonel  Mason  notice  of  the  time 
appointed  for  the  meeting  of  the  convention,  and  informed 
him  that  the  money  to  defray  his  expenses  would  be  pro- 
vided by  the  State. 

(iUNSTON  Hau.,  April  12th,  1787. 

Dear  Sir  : 

I  have  received  your  favour,  notifying  the  time  appointed  for 
the  meeting  of  the  deputies  of  the  different  States  in  the  city 
of  Philadelphia,  and  informing  me  that  the  money  was  ready  in 
the  treasury  to  be  advanced  us,  for  defraying  our  expenses ;  this 
last  is,  at  present,  an  article  of  such  importance  to  me,  that 
without  it,  I  could  hardly  have  attended ;  having  been  dis- 
appointed in  the  payment  of  several  sums  of  tobacco  sold ;  so 
that  I  have  lately  been  obliged  to  commence  suits  in  Virginia 
and  Maryland,  for  nearly  the  amount  of  six  thousand  pounds, 
upon  contracts,  in  which  I  expected  punctuality. 

I  have  desired  the  bearer,  my  neighbor  Col.  Wagener,  to 
bring  me  up,  from  the  treasury,  the  sum  of  sixty  pounds. 
Should  our  stay  in  Philadelphia  prove  shorter  than  I  expect, 
whatever  money  may  remain,  more  than  my  due,  shall  be  punc- 
tually returned.  You  will  oblige  me  exceedingly  in  giving  what- 
ever directions  may  be  necessary  from  the  Executive,  for  remit- 
ting the  said  sum  of  sixty  pounds  to  me  by  Col.  Wagener  ;  as  I 
shall  not  probably  meet  ^with  another  safe  hand,  in  time. 

I  hope  I  shall  have  the  pleasure  of  seeing  you  at  Gunston 
Hall,  on  your  way  to  Philadelphia  ;  and  have  the  honor  to  be, 
with  greatest  respect, 

Dear  Sir, 

Your  most  obedient  servant, 

G.  Mason.' 

'  MS.  Letter.     The  address  is  missing  in  the  original. 


LETTERS   TO  EDMUND  RANDOLPH.  99 

GuNSTON  Hall,  April  33d,  1787. 
Dear  Sir  : 

I  have  received  your  favor  by  Col.  Wagcncr  with  the  sum  of 
sixty  pounds  from  the  treasury.  I  was  unacquainted  with  the 
sum  allotted  for  each  deputy,  and  was  afraid  of  exceeding  it. 
Considering  the  number  of  deputies  from  the  different  States, 
the  great  distance  of  some  of  them,  and  the  probability  that  we 
may  be  obliged  to  wait  many  days  before  a  full  meeting  can  be 
obtained,  we  may,  perhaps,  be  much  longer  from  home  than  I  at 
first  expected.  I  will,  therefore,  accept  your  very  obliging  offer 
of  getting  the  balance  of  the  sum  of  ;£^ioo  (vizt.  ;£'4o),  invested 
for  me  in  Philadelphia  Bank  notes,  or  good  notes  on  Mr.  Robert 
Morris,  either  of  which,  I  presume,  will  be  equal  to  cash  in  the 
city  of  Philadelphia,  and  you  will  do  me  the  favor  to  bring  them 
up  with  you.  Whatever  remains  more  than  our  allowance  of  six 
dollars  per  day,  shall  be  punctually  returned  to  the  treasury. 

I  think  to  set  out  time  enough  to  spend  a  day  or  two  in 
Annapolis,  in  order  to  have  a  little  conversation  with  some  of  the 
Maryland  deputies  on  the  subject  of  the  convention,  and  if 
the  weather  proves  fine  to  cross  the  bay  there ;  otherwise  to  go 
through  Baltimore.  I  expect  to  have  the  pleasure  of  seeing  you 
at  Gunston  Hall  on  your  way,  and  if  you  will  do  me  the  favor  to 
let  me  know  at  what  time  to  expect  you,  I  will  regulate  my 
movements  accordingly.  I  am,  with  the  greatest  regard  and 
esteem,  dear  Sir, 

Your  most  obedient  servant, 

G.  Mason.' 


1 «« 


Virginia  Calendar  Papers,*'  vol.  iv.,  p.  273. 


CHAPTER    IV. 


IN    THE    FEDERAL    COSVENTIOS. 


May-July,    1787. 

Of  the  Convention  which  framed  the  Constitution  of  the 
United  States,  Flanders  says : 

"Over  its  delibentions  presided  Washington;  the  genial 
wisdom  of  Franklin  illastrated  its  debates;  the  trained  mind, 
extensiTe  information  and  reflective  habits  of  Madtscm ;  the 
fertile  resonrccs,  the  ready  and  treachant  talents  of  Gonventenr 
Morris ;  the  liberal  views  and  sound  sense  of  Charles  Coteswortb 
PInckney  ;  the  tnJUxibU  iniegrity  and  unbendii^  rtp^MitoMum  0/ 
Celamel  Mason ;  the  penetrating  mind  and  persuasive  eloquence 
of  Rnfus  King,  were  all  displaced  on  this  conspicnons  theatre, 
and  more  or  less  determined  the  course  and  result  of  the  Con- 
vention." ' 

To  this  brilliant  assemblage  we  now  follow  the  subject  of 
our  memoir.  Colonel  Mason  arrived  in  Philadelphia  the 
17th  of  May,  and  two  letters  of  his  to  George  Mason,  Jr., 
and  one  to  Arthur  Lee,  bring  us  to  the  threshold  of  the  new 
scene  in  which  he  was  to  act  such  a  conspicuous  part. 

"  PBttADU.rMIA.   Majr  loth,    1787- 

"Dear  George: 

"  Upon  our  arrival  here  on  Thursday  evening,  seventeenth  May, 
I  found  only  the  Sutes  of  Virginia  and  Pennsylvania  fully  repre- 
sented ;  and  there  are  at  this  time  only  five — New  York,  the  two 
Carolinas,  and  the  two  before  mentioned.     All  the  States,  Rhode 
■  "CUef  JoMkM  of  th«  United  Suies."  vol.  ii.,  p.  1*7. 


LETTER    TO  HIS  SON  GEORGE,  lOI 

Island  excepted,  have  made  their  appointments ;  but  the  mem- 
bers drop  in  slowly ;  some  of  the  deputies  from  the  Eastern 
States  are  here,  but  none  of  them  have  yet  a  sufficient  represen- 
tation, and  it  will  probably  be  several  days  before  the  Convention 
will  be  authorized  to  proceed  to  business.  The  expectations  and 
hopes  of  all  the  Union  centre  in  this  Convention.  God  grant 
that  we  may  be  able  to  concert  effectual  means  of  preserving 
our  country  from  the  evils  which  threaten  us. 

"The  Virginia  deputies  (who  are  all  here)  meet  and  confer 
together  two  or  three  hours  every  day,  in  order  to  form  a  proper 
correspondence  of  sentiments  ;  and  for  form's  sake,  to  see  what 
new  deputies  are  arrived,  and  to  grow  into  some  acquaintance 
with  each  other,  we  regularly  meet  every  day  at  three  o'clock. 
These  and  some  occasional  conversations  with  the  deputies  of 
different  States,  and  with  some  of  the  general  officers  of  the  late 
army  (who  are  here  upon  a  general  meeting  of  the  Cincinnati), 
are  the  only  opportunities  I  have  hitherto  had  of  forming  any 
opinion  upon  the  great  subject  of  our  mission,  and,  consequently, 
a  very  imperfect  and  indecisive  one.  Yet,  upon  the  great  princi- 
ples of  it,  I  have  reason  to  hope  there  will  be  greater  unanimity 
and  less  opposition,  except  from  the  little  States,  than  was  at  first 
apprehended.  The  most  prevalent  idea  in  the  principal  States 
seems  to  be  a  total  alteration  of  the  present  federal  system,  and 
substituting  a  great  national  council  or  parliament,  consisting  of 
two  branches  of  the  legislature,  founded  upon  the  principles  of 
equal  proportionate  representation,  with  full  legislative  powers 
upon  all  the  subjects  of  the  Union  ;  and  an  executive  :  and  to 
make  the  several  State  legislatures  subordinate  to  the  national, 
by  giving  the  latter  the  power  of  a  negative  upon  all  such  laws 
as  they  shall  judge  contrary  to  the  interest  of  the  federal  Union. 
It  is  easy  to  foresee  that  there  will  be  much  difficulty  in  organizing 
a  government  upon  this  great  scale,  and  at  the  same  time  reserv- 
ing to  the  State  legislatures  a  sufficient  portion  of  power  for 
promoting  and  securing  the  prosperity  and  happiness  of  their 
respective  citizens  ;  yet  with  a  proper  degree  of  coolness,  liberal- 
ity and  candor  (very  rare  commodities  by  the  bye),  I  doubt  not 
but  it  may  be  effected.  There  are  among  a  variety  some  very 
eccentric  opinions  upon  this  great  subject ;  and  what  is  a  very 
extraordinary  phenomenon,  we  are  likely  to  find  the  republicans, 


I02      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON, 

on  this  occasion,  issue  from  the  Southern  and  Middle  States,  and 
the  anti-republicans  from  the  Eastern  ;  however  extraordinary 
this  may  at  first  seem,  it  may,  I  think  be  accounted  for  from  a 
very  common  and  natural  impulse  of  the  human  mind.  Men 
disappointed  in  expectations  too  hastily  and  sanguinely  formed^ 
tired  and  disgusted  with  the  unexpected  evils  they  have  experi- 
enced, and  anxious  to  remove  them  as  far  as  possible,  are  very 
apt  to  run  into  the  opposite  extreme  ;  and  the  people  of  the 
Eastern  States,  setting  out  with  more  republican  principles,  have 
consequently  been  more  disappointed  than  we  have  been. 

"We  found  travelling  very  expensive — from  eight  to  Aine 
dollars  per  day.  In  this  city  the  living  is  cheap.  We  are  at  the 
old  Indian  Queen  in  Fourth  Street,  where  we  are  very  well  accom- 
modated, have  a  good  room  to  ourselves,  and  are  charged  only 
twenty-five  Pennsylvania  currency  per  day,  including  our  servants 
and  horses,  exclusive  of  club  in  liquors  and  extra  charges ;  so 
that  I  hope  I  shall  be  able  to  defray  my  expenses  with  my  public 
allowance,  and  more  than  that  I  do  not  wish." 

Philadelphia,  May  ai,  1787. 
Dear  Sir  : 

I  take  the  opportunity  by  Col.  Carrington  of  returning  the 
papers  you  left  in  my  hands,  when  I  had  the  pleasure  of  your 
company  at  Gunston  Hall. 

I  arrived  in  this  city  on  Thursday  evening  last,  but  found  so 
few  of  the  deputies  here  from  the  several  States  that  I  am  unable 
to  form  any  certain  opinion  on  the  subject  of  our  mission.  The 
most  prevalent  idea  I  think  at  present  is  a  total  change  of  the 
federal  system,  and  instituting  a  great  national  council  or  parlia- 
ment upon  the  principles  of  equal,  proportionate  representation, 
consisting  of  two  branches  of  the  legislature  invested  with  full 
legislative  powers  upon  the  objects  of  the  Union  ;  and  to  make 
the  State  legislatures  subordinate  to  the  national  by  giving  to  the 
latter  a  negative  upon  all  such  laws  as  they  judge  contrary  to  the 
principles  and  interest  of  the  Union  ;  to  iestablish  also  a  national 
executive,  and  a  judiciary  system  with  cognizance  of  all  such  mat- 
ters as  depend  upon  the  law  of  nations,  and  such  other  objects  as 
the  local  courts  of  justice  may  be  inadequate  to. 

'  Bancroft's  "  History  of  the  Constitution,**  vol.  ii..  Appendix,  p.  421. 


i 


LETTER    TO  ARTHUR  LSE.  lOJ 

I  shall  do  myself  the  honor  of  corresponding  with  you  from 
time  to  time,  and  shall  be  much  obliged  to  you  for  your  senti- 
ments upon  the  important  subjects  that  will  be  agitated  in  this 
Convention,  upon  which  the  prosperity  and  the  safety  of  our 
country  will  so  materially  depend. 

I  have  received  your  favor  by  Major  Jackson  ;  nothing  that  I 
have  heard  has  yet  been  mentioned  upon  this  subject  among  the 
deputies  now  here  ;  though  I  understand  there  are  several  candi- 
dates, which  I  am  surprised  at^  as  the  office  will  be  of  so  short 
duration,  and  merely  honorary,  or  possibly  introductory  to  some* 
thing  more  substantial. 

I  am  with  the  greatest  esteem  and  regard 

Dear  Sir 
Your  most  obedient  servant 

G.  Mason. 
The  Honorable  Arthur  Lee,  Esq  : 
New  York.' 

Philadelphia,  May  27,  1787. 
Dear  George  : 

I  wrote  you  by  the  post  a  few  days  after  my  arrival  in  this 
city.  I  shall  be  glad  to  know  whether  my  letter  has  come  safe 
to  hand,  as  also  the  letters  I  wrote  from  Baltimore  to  your 
brothers  William  and  Thomson,  to  which  I  have  not  yet  received 
any  answer.  I  wish  to  be  informed  also  whether  you  have  had 
any  good  rains  and  what  prospect  of  the  crops  of  wheat  and 
tobacco.  It  is  impossible  to  judge  how  long  we  shall  be  de- 
tained here,  but  from  present  appearances  I  fear  until  July,  if 
not  later.  I  begin  to  grow  heartily  tired  of  the  etiquette  and 
nonsense  so  fashionable  in  this  city.  It  would  take  me  some 
months  to  make  myself  master  of  them,  and  that  it  should 
require  months  to  learn  what  is  not  worth  remembering  as  many 
minutes,  is  to  me  so  discouraging  a  circumstance  as  determines 
me  to  give  myself  no  manner  of  trouble  about  them.  I  have  not 
yet  been  able  to  do  anything  respecting  your  brother  John,  and 
fear  I  shall  meet  with  much  difficulty  on  that  subject. 

'  MS.  Letter  (published  in  "  Life  of  A.  I.ee/*  vol.  ii.,  p.  319).  On  the  same 
sheet  of  the  original  are  given  seven  amendments  to  the  Constitution — in  the 
handwriting  of  Arthur  Lee.  See  Appendix  ii.  The  biographer  of  Arthur  Lee 
regrets  "  the  loss  of  the  residue  of  the  valuable  letters  of  G.  Mason." 


I04      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 


Wc  had  yesterday,  for  the  first  time,  a  representation  of  seven 
States — New  York,  New  Jersey,  Pennsylvania,  Delaware,  Vir- 
ginia, and  the  two  Carolinas,  and  it  is  expected  that  the  deputies 
from  Massachusetts,  Connecticut,  and  Georgia  will  be  here  by 
Monday  or  Tuesday.  The  State  of  Rhode  Island  has  refused 
to  appoint  deputies,  and  although  New  Hampshire  has  appointed 
it  is  thought  we  shall  be  deprived  of  their  representation  by  no 
provision  having  been  made  for  defraying  their  expenses.  The 
State  of  Delaware  has  tied  up  the  hands  of  her  deputies  by  an 
express  direction  to  retain  the  principle  in  the  present  Con- 
federation of  each  State  having  the  same  vote ;  no  other  State^ 
so  far  as  we  have  yet  seen,  hath  restrained  its  deputies  on  any 
subject. 

Nothing  was  done  yesterday  but  unanimously  appointing 
General  Washington  President ;  Major  Jackson  (by  a  majority  of 
five  States  to  two)  Secretary ;  reading  the  credentials  from  the 
different  States  on  the  floor,  and  appointing  a  committee  to  draw 
up  and  report  the  rules  of  proceeding.  It  is  expected  our  doors 
will  be  shut,  and  communications  upon  the  business  of  the  Con- 
vention be  forbidden  during  its  sitting.  This  I  think  myself  a 
proper  precaution  to  prevent  mistakes  and  misrepresentation 
until  the  business  shall  have  been  completed,  when  the  whole 
may  have  a  very  different  complexion  from  that  in  which  the 
several  crude  and  indigested  parts  might  in  their  first  shape 
appear  if  submitted  to  the  public  eye. 

Present  me  kindly  to  Betsy,  to  the  family  at  Gunston,  to  Mr. 
McCarty  and  Sallie,  and  to  all  our  friends. 

I  am,  dear  George, 

Your  affectionate  father, 

G.  Mason.' 

Richard  Henry  Lee  had  declined  a  seat  in  the  Conven- 
tion, wishing  to  leave  himself  free  to  act  in  Congress  as  his 
convictions  should  determine.  He  wrote  to  George  Mason^ 
giving  his  views  in  regard  to  the  changes  to  be  desired, 
knowing  that  Colonel  Mason  would  be  likely  to  forward 
them. 

'  Mason  Papers. 


RICHARD  HENRY  LEE    TO  GEORGE  MASON.  I05 

May  15,  1787,  Chantilly. 
Dear  Sir — It  has  given  me  much  pleasure  to  be  informed  that 
General  Washington  and  yourself  have  gone  to  the  Convention. 
We  may  hope,  from  such  efforts,  that  alterations  beneficial  will 
take  place  in  our  Federal  Constitution,  if  it  shall  be  found,  on 
deliberate  inquiry,  that  the  evils  now  felt  do  flow  from  errors  in 
that  constitution  ;  but,  alas  !  sir,  I  fear  it  is  more  in  vicious 
manners,  than  mistakes  in  form,  that  we  must  seek  for  the 
causes  of  the  present  discontent.  The  present  causes  of  com- 
plaint seem  to  be,  that  Congress  cannot  command  the  money 
necessary  for  the  just  purposes  of  paying  debts,  or  for  support- 
ing the  federal  government ;  and  that  they  cannot  make  treaties 
of  commerce,  unless  power  unlimited,  of  regulating  trade  be 
given.  The  Confederation  now  gives  right  to  name  the  sums 
necessary,  and  to  apportion  the  quotas  by  a  rule  established. 
This  rule  is,  unfortunately,  very  difficult  of  execution,  and, 
therefore,  the  recommendations  of  Congress  on  this  subject 
have  not  been  made  in  federal  mode  ;  so  that  States  have 
thought  themselves  justified  in  non-compliance.  If  the  rule 
were  plain  and  easy,  and  refusal  were  then  to  follow  demand,  I 
see  clearly,  that  no  form  of  government  whatever,  short  of  force, 
will  answer  ;  for  the  same  want  of  principle  that  produces 
neglect  now,  will  do  so  under  any  change  not  supported  by  power 
compulsory  ;  the  difficulty  certainly  is,  how  to  give  this  power  in 
such  manner  as  that  it  may  only  be  used  to  good,  and  not  abused 
to  bad,  purposes.  Whoever  shall  solve  this  difficulty  will  receive 
the  thanks  of  this  and  future  generations.  With  respect  to  the 
want  of  power  to  make  treaties  of  trade,  for  want  of  legislation, 
to  regulate  the  general  commerce,  it  appears  to  me,  that  the 
right  of  making  treaties,  and  the  legislative  power  contended  for 
are  essentially  different  things  ;  the  former  may  be  given  and 
executed,  without  the  danger  attending  upon  the  States  parting 
with  their  legislative  authority,  in  the  instance  contended  for. 
If  the  third  paragraph  of  the  sixth  article  were  altered,  by 
striking  out  the  words,  in  pursuance  of  any  treaties  already  pro- 
posed by  Congress,  to  the  courts  of  France  and  Spain  ;  and  the 
proviso  stricken  out  of  the  first  section  in  the  ninth  article,  Con- 
gress would  then  have  a  complete  and  unlimited  right  of  making 
treaties  of  all  kinds,  and,  so  far,  I  really  think  it  both  right  and 


I06     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON, 

necessary  ;  but  this  is  very  different  from,  and  in  danger  far 
short  of,  giving  an  exclusive  power  of  regulating  trade.  A  min- 
ister of  Congress  may  go  to  a  foreign  court  with  full  power  to 
make  a  commercial  treaty  ;  but  if  he  were  to  propose  to  such 
court  that  the  eight  northern  States  in  this  Union,  should  have 
the  exclusive  right  of  carrying  the  products  of  the  five  southern 
States,  or  of  supplying  these  States  with  foreign  articles,  such  a 
proposition  of  monopoly  would  be  rejected  ;  and,  therefore,  no 
danger  here  from  the  power  of  making  treaty  ;  but  a  legislative 
right  to  regulate  trade  through  the  States  may,  in  a  thousand 
artful  modes,  be  so  abused  as  to  produce  the  monopoly  aforesaid, 
to  the  extreme  oppression  of  the  staple  States,  as  they  are  called. 
I  do  not  say  that  this  would  be  done,  but  I  contend  that  it 
might  be  done  ;  and,  where  interest  powerfully  prompts,  it  is 
greatly  to  be  feared  that  it  would  be  done.  Whoever  has  served 
long  in  Congress,  knows  that  the  restraint  of  making  the  consent 
of  nine  States  necessary,  is  feeble  and  incompetent.  Some  will 
sometimes  sleep,  and  some  will  be  negligent,  but  it  is  certain  that 
improper  power  not  given  cannot  be  improperly  used. 

The  human  mind  is  too  apt  to  rush  from  one  extreme  to 
another  ;  it  appears,  by  the  objections  that  came  from  the  differ- 
ent States,  when  the  Confederation  was  submitted  for  considera- 
tion, that  the  universal  apprehension  was,  of  the  too  great,  not 
the  defective  powers  of  Congress.  Whence  this  immense  change 
of  sentiment,  in  a  few  years  ?  for  now  the  cry  is  power,  give  Con- 
gress power.  Without  reflecting  that  every  free  nation,  that  hath 
ever  existed,  has>lost  its  liberty  by  the  same  rash  impatience,  and 
want  of  necessary  caution.  I  am  glad,  however,  to  find,  on  this 
'occasion,  that  so  many  gentlemen,  of  competent  years,  are  sent 
to  the  Convention,  for,  certainly,  *'  youth  is  the  season  of  credu- 
lity, and  confidence  a  plant  of  slow  growth  in  an  aged  bosom." 
The  States  have  been  so  unpardonably  remiss,  in  furnishing  their 
federal  quotas,  as  to  make  impost  necessary,  for  a  term  of  time, 
with  a  provisional  security,  that  the  money  arising  shall  be  un- 
changeably applied  to  the  payment  of  their  public  debts  ;  that 
accounts  of  the  application,  shall  be  annually  sent  to  each  State  ; 
and  the  collecting  officers  appointed  by,  and  be  amenable  to  the 
States  :  or,  if  not  so,  very  strong  preventives  and  correctives  of 
official  abuse  and  misconduct,  interpose,  to  shield  the  people  from 


SUGGESTIONS  FOR    THE  NEW  SYSTEM.  lO/ 


oppression.  Give  me  leave,  sir,  to  detain  you  a  moment  longer, 
with  a  proposition  that  I  have  not  heard  mentioned.  It  is  that 
the  right  of  making  paper  money  shall  be  exclusively  vested  in 
Congress ;  such  a  right  will  be  clearly  within  the  spirit  of  the 
fourth  section  of  the  ninth  article  of  the  present  confederation. 
This  appears  to  me,  to  be  a  restraint  of  the  last  importance  to  the 
peace  and  happiness  of  the  Union,  and  of  every  part  of  it 
Knaves  assure,  and  fools  believe,  that  calling  paper  money,  and 
making  it  tender,  is  the  way  to  be  rich  and  happy;  thus  the 
national  mind  is  kept  in  constant  ferment ;  and  the  public  coun- 
cils in  continual  disturbance  by  the  intrigues  of  wicked  men,  for 
fraudulent  purposes,  for  speculating  designs.  This  would  be  a 
great  step  towards  correcting  morals,  and  suppressing  legislative 
frauds,  which,  of  all  frauds,  is  the  most  hateful  to  society.  Do 
you  not  think,  sir,  that  it  ought  to  be  declared,  by  the  new  system, 
that  any  State  act  of  legislation  that  shall  contravene,  or  oppose, 
the  authorized  acts  of  Congress,  or  interfere  with  the  expressed 
rights  of  that  body,  shall  be  ipso  facto  void,  and  of  no  force  what- 
soever ? 

My  respects,  if  you  please,  to  your  brethren  of  the  Convention, 
from  this  State,  and  pardon  me  for  the  liberty  I  have  taken  of 
troubling  you  with  my  sentiments  on  the  interesting  business  that 
calls  you  to  Philadelphia.  I  have  the  honour  to  be,  with  affec- 
tionate esteem  and  regard. 

Your  friend  and  servant, 

Richard  Henrv  Lee. 

George  Mason,  Esq.* 

The  Convention  met  on  Friday,  the  25th  of  May,  seven ' 
States  being  represented.  On  the  following  Monday  nine/ 
other  deputies  took  their  seats,  and  Connecticut  and  Mary- 
land were  added  to  the  number  of  States  present.  The  rules 
as  reported  were  read.  Mr.  King  of  Massachusetts  objected 
to  that  one  authorizing  any  member  to  call  for  the  yeas  and 
nays  and  have  them  entered  on  the  minutes.  Colonel  Mason 
seconded  the  objection,  adding  "  that  such  a  record  of  the 
opinions  of  members  would  be  an  obstacle  to  a  change  of 


I  •« 


Life  of  Richftrd  H.  Lee,"  vol.  ii.,  p.  71. 


I08      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON, 

them  on  conviction  ;  and  in  case  of  its  being  hereafter  pro- 
mulgated must  furnish  handles  to  the  adversaries  of  the 
result  of  the  meeting." '  The  rule  was  then  rejected.  Madi- 
'son  tells  us  in  his  report  of  these  debates  that  previous  to 
the  opening  of  the  Convention  it  had  been  a  subject  of  dis- 
cussion among  the  members  present,  as  to  how  the  States 
should  vote  in  the  Convention.  Several  of  the  members 
from  Pennsylvania  had  urged  that  the  large  States  unite  in 
refusing  to  the  small  States  an  equal  vote,  but  Virginia,  be- 
lieving this  to  be  injudicious  if  not  unjust  "  discountenanced 
and  stifled  the  project."  On  the  29th  the  real  business  of 
the  Convention  was  opened  by  Edmund  Randolph,  who  as 
Governor  of  Virginia  was  put  forward  as  spokesman  by  his 
colleagues.  He  began  by  saying  that  as  the  Convention  had 
originated  from  Virginia,  and  the  delegation  from  this  State 
supposed  that  some  proposition  was  expected  from  them, 
the  task  had  been  imposed  on  him.  After  enumerating  the 
defects  of  the  Confederation,  he  detailed  the  remedy  pro- 
posed. This  latter  was  set  forth  in  fifteen  resolutions  and 
was  called  afterwards  the  Virginia  plan  of  government. 
Charles  Pinckney  from  South  Carolina  had  also  a  draft  of  a 
federal  government,  which  was  read  and  like  the  former  re- 
ferred to  a  committee  of  the  whole  House. 

The  first  proposition  debated  was  a  resolution  presented 
by  Edmund  Randolph  but  formulated  by  Gouvemeur  Mor- 
ris, "  That  a  national  government  ought  to  be  established 
consisting  of  a  Supreme  Legislative,  Executive,  and  Judici- 
ary." Here  South  Carolina  asked  if  Mr.  Randolph  meant  to 
abolish  the  State  governments.  Doubts  were  expressed  by 
members  from  Massachusetts  and  South  Carolina  whether 
the  deputies  could  discuss  a  system  founded  on  different 
principles  from  the  Federal  Constitution.  Gouverneur  Mor- 
ris explained  the  difference,  as  he  conceived  it,  between  a 
federal  and  a  national  government.  The  term  federal,  how- 
ever, was  to  change  its  signification,  and  to  be  used  by  the 
advocates  of  a  '*  national  government "  to  describe  themselves. 

'  "  Madison  Papers,"  vol.  ii.,  p.  724. 


DELINQUENT  STATES  COULD  NOT  BE  COERCED.     I09 

George  Mason  spoke  after  Mr.  Morris,  and  put  his  finger  on 
one  of  the  chief  weaknesses  of  the  existing  system.  He  ob- 
served, "  not  only  that  the  present  Confederation  was  defi- ' 
cient  in  not  providing  for  coercion  and  punishment  against  • 
delinquent  States,  but  argued  very  cogently  that  punishment 
could  not  in  the  nature  of  things  be  executed  on  the  States 
collectively,  and  therefore  that  such  a  government  was  neces- 
sary as  could  directly  operate  on  individuals,  and  would 
punish  those  only  whose  guilt  required  it."  *  This  was  a 
cardinal  principle,  that  coercion  could  not  be  used  against 
States.  And  here  George  Mason  was  in  direct  opposition  to 
a  clause  in  the  sixth  resolution  of  the  Virginia  plan,  as  pre- 
sented by  Edmund  Randolph,  which  declared  that  the 
National  or  Federal  legislature  should  have  the  power  "  to 
call  forth  the  force  of  the  Union  against  any  member  of  the 
Union  failing  to  fulfil  its  duty  under  the  Articles  thereof." 
Of  all  the  Virginia  delegation,  apparently,  Washington, 
Madison,  Randolph,  McClurg,  and  Mason,  the  latter  alone 
saw  clearly  the  danger  here,  and  he  was  the  first  one  in  the 
Convention  to  suggest  the  solution  of  the  difficulty  which 
was  subsequently  adopted. 

On  the  31st  of  May  Georgia  was  represented  in  the  Con- 
vention, making  ten  States  present.  It  was  agreed  without 
debate  on  this  day  that  the  "  National  Legislature  "  ought 
to  consist  of  two  branches,  but  the  succeeding  resolution, 
that  the  members  of  the  first  branch  ought  to  be  elected  by 
the  people  of  the  several  States,  provoked  some  discussion. 
It  was  opposed,  says  Yates,  "  strange  to  tell  by  Massachu- 
setts and  Connecticut,  who  supposed  they  ought  to  be 
chosen  by  the  legislatures ;  and  Virginia  supported  the  re- 
solve, alleging  that  this  ought  to  be  the  democratic  branch  of 
government,  and  as  such  immediately  vested  in  the  people."  • 
Colonel  Mason  spoke  first  after  Sherman  and  Gerry,  and 
Madison  followed  after  Wilson,  of  Pennsylvania,  all  three  of 
the  latter  contending  for  an  election  of  the  larger  branch  of 

'  IHd,,  p.  748. 

*  Yates*  Minutes,  Elliot's  "  Debates,"  second  edition,  1861,  vol.  i.,  p.  392. 


no     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

Congress  by  the  people.  "  It  was  to  be,"  said  George 
Mason,  "  the  grand  depository  of  the  democratic  principle 
of  the  government.  It  was,  so  to  speak,  to  be  our  House 
of  Commons.  It  ought  to  know  and  sympathize  with  every 
part  of  the  community ;  and  ought  therefore  to  be  taken, 
not  only  from  different  parts  of  the  whole  republic,  but  also 
from  different  districts  of  the  larger  members  of  it ;  which 
had  in  several  instances,  particularly  in  Virginia,  different 
interests  and  views  arising  from  difference  of  produce,  of 
habits,  etc.  He  admitted  that  we  had  been  too  demo- 
cratic,  but  was  afraid  we  should  incautiously  run  into  the 
opposite  extreme.  We  ought  to  attend  to  the  rights  of 
every  class  of  the  people.  He  had  often  wondered  at  the 
indifference  of  the  superior  classes  of  society  to  this  dictate 
of  humanity  and  policy;  considering,  that,  however  afflu- 
ent their  circumstances,  or  elevated  their  situations,  might 
be,  the  course  of  a  few  years  not  only  might,  but  certainly 
would, ,  distribute  their  posterity  throughout  the  lowest 
classes  of  society.  Every  selfish  motive,  therefore,  every 
family  attachment,  ought  to  recommend  such  a  system  of 
policy  as  would  provide  no  less  carefully  for  the  rights 
and  happiness  of  the  lowest,  than  of  the  highest,  order  of 
citizens.'  * 

On  the  1st  of  June  the  Convention  considered  the  ques- 
tion of  the  Executive.  It  was  moved  that  his  term  of  office 
should  be  for  seven  years,  though  others  advocated  three 
years,  providing  for  re-eligibility.  George  Mason  "  was  for 
seven  years  at  least,  and  for  prohibiting  a  re-eligibility,  as  the 
best  expedient,  both  for  preventing  the  effect  of  a  false 
complaisance  on  the  side  of  the  Legislature  towards  unfit 
characters ;  and  a  temptation  on  the  side  of  the  Executive  to 
intrigue  with  the  Legislature  for  a  re-appointment."  *  And 
seven  years  was  the  term  then  agreed  upon.  On  the  mode  of 
appointing  the  Executive,  whether  it  should  be  by  Congress, 
as  proposed  in  the  Virginia  plan,  or  by  the  people,  as  was 
moved  at  this  time,  there  was  some  debate.     George  Mason 

*  "  Madison  Papers,"  vol.  ii.,  p.  754.  *  Ibid,,  p.  766. 


OBJECTIONS  TO  A    SINGLE  EXECUTIVE.  Ill 

• -    — -^-       -  -  ,  ^ ^-^_^^^.^^_ 

% 

advocated  the  latter  mode  ''  but  thought  it  impracticable. 
He  wished,  however,  that  Mr.  Wilson,  who  had  suggested 
the  election  by  the  people  might  have  time  to  digest  it  in 
his  own  form." '  On  the  following  day  the  subject  was 
renewed,  but  the  plan  of  Presidential  Electors  was  not  agreed 
to.  In  regard  to  a  resolution  "  that  the  Executive  be  made 
removable  by  the  National  Legislature,"  George  Mason  said  : 
"  Some  mode  of  displacing  an  unfit  magistrate  is  rendered 
indispensable  by  the  fallibility  of  those  who  choose,  as  well 
as  by  the  corruptibility  of  the  man  chosen.  He  opposed 
decidedly  the  making  the  Executive  the  mere  creature  of 
the  Legislature,  as  a  violation  of  the  fundamental  principles 
of  good  government"* 

The  vote  on  the  question  of  a  single  Executive  was  taken 
on  Monday,  the  4th  of  June.  Colonel  Mason  happened 
not  to  be  in  the  House  at  the  time,  but  he  was  known  to  be, 
opposed  to  the  resolve.  Later  in  the  day  he  spoke  against 
vesting  the  executive  powers  in  a  single  person.  Among 
these  powers,  he  went  on  to  say,  was  that  of  appointing  to 
offices  in  certain  cases. 

'*  The  probable  abuses  of  a  negative  had  been  well  explained 
by  Dr.  Franklin,  as  proved  by  experience,  the  best  of  all  tests. 
Will  not  the  same  door  be  opened  here  ?  The  Executive  may 
refuse  its  assent  to  necessary  measures,  till  new  appointments 
shall  be  referred  to  him ;  and  having  by  degrees  engrossed 
all  these  into  his  own  hands,  the  American  Executive,  like  the 
British,  will,  by  bribery  and  influence,  save  himself  the  trouble 
and  odium  of  exerting  his  negative  afterwards.  We  are,  Mr. 
Chairman,  going  very  far  in  this  business.  We  are  not,  indeed, 
constituting  a  British  government,  but  a  more  dangerous  mon- 
archy, an  elective  one.  We  are  introducing  a  new  principle  into 
our  system,  and  not  necessary,  as  in  the  British  government, 
where  the  executive  has  greater  rights  to  defend.  Do  gentlemen 
mean  to  pave  the  way  to  hereditary  monarchy  ?  Do  they  flatter 
themselves  that  the  people  will  ever  consent  to  such  an  inno- 
vation ?     If  they  do,  I  venture  to  tell  them,  they  are  mistaken. 

» IHd,,  p.  768.  •  iHd,,  p.  776. 


112      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

The  people  never  will  consent.  And  do  gentlemen  consider  the 
danger  of  delay,  and  the  still  greater  danger  of  a  rejection,  not 
for  a  moment,  but  forever,  of  the  plan  which  shall  be  proposed  to 
them  ?  Notwithstanding  the  oppression  and  injustice  experi- 
enced among  us  from  democracy,  the  genius  of  the  people  is  in 
favor  of  it ;  and  the  genius  of  the  people  must  be  consulted.  He 
could  not  but  consider  the  Federal  system  as  in  effect  dissolved 
by  the  appointment  of  this  convention  to  devise  a  better  one. 
And  do  gentlemen  look  forward  to  the  dangerous  interval 
between  extinction  of  an  old,  and  the  establishment  of  a  new, 
government ;  and  to  the  scenes  of  confusion  which  may  ensue  ? 
He  hoped  that  nothing  like  a  monarchy  would  ever  be  attempted 
in  this  country.  A  hatred  to  its  oppressions  had  carried  the 
people  through  the  late  Revolution.  Will  it  not  be  enough 
to  enable  the  Executive  to  suspend  offensive  laws,  till  they  shall 
be  coolly  revised,  and  the  objections  to  them  overruled  by  a 
greater  majority  than  was  required  in  the  first  instance?  He 
never  could  agree  to  give  up  all  the  rights  of  the  people  to 
a  single  magistrate.  If  more  than  one  had  been  fixed  on, 
greater  powers  might  have  been  entrusted  to  the  Executive. 
He  hoped  this  attempt  to  give  such  powers  would  have  its 
weight  hereafter,  as  an  argument  for  increasing  the  number  of 
the  executive."  * 

George  Mason's  views  on  the  subject  of  the  Executive  are 
further  elaborated  in  the  following  speech,  which  is  pre- 
served in  manuscript,  and  which  is  undated,  but  was  evi- 
dently written  for  delivery  in  the  Convention  at  this  or  a 
subsequent  period. 

'*  It  is  not  yet  determined  how  the  Executive  is  to  be  regulated, 
whether  it  is  to  act  solely  from  its  own  judgment,  or  with 
the  advice  of  others  ;  whether  there  is,  or  is  not  to  be  a  council 
annexed  to  it,  and  if  a  council  how  far  their  advice  shall  operate 
in  controlling  the  judgment  of  the  supreme  magistracy.  If  there 
is  no  Council  of  State  and  the  executive  power  be  vested  in 
a  single  person,  what  are  the  provisions  for  its  proper  operation, 

» Ibid,,  p.  787. 


SPEECH  ON   THIS  QUESTION.  II3 

upon  casual  disability  by  sickness  or  otherwise.  These  are  sub- 
jects which  must  come  under  our  consideration,  and  perhaps 
some  of  the  most  important  objections  would  be  obviated  by 
placing  the  executive  power  in  the  hands  of  three,  instead  of  one 
person. 

'*  There  is  also  to  be  a  council  of  revision,  invested,  in  a  great 
measure,  with  a  power  of  negative  upon  the  laws ;  and  an  idea 
has  been  suggested,  either  within  or  without  doors,  that  this 
council  should  be  formed  of  the  principal  officers  of  the  state, 
I  presume  of  the  members  of  the  Treasury  Board,  the  Board  of 
War,  the  Navy  Board,  and  the  Department  for  Foreign  Affairs. 
It  is  unnecessary,  if  not  improper,  to  examine  this  part  of  the 
subject  now,  but  I  will  venture  to  hazard  an  opinion,  when 
it  comes  to  be  thoroughly  investigated,  that  we  can  hardly  find 
worse  materials  out  of  which  to  create  a  council  of  revision, 
or  more  improper  or  unsafe  hands  in  which  to  place  the  power 
of  a  negative  upon  our  laws.  It  is  proposed,  I  think,  sir,  in  the 
plan  upon  your  table,  that  this  council  of  revision  shall  be 
formed  out  of  the  members  of  the  Judiciary  departments  joined 
with  the  Executive ;  and  I  am  inclined  to  think,  when  the  subject 
shall  be  taken  up,  it  may  be  demonstrated,  that  this  will  be  the 
wisest  and  safest  mode  of  constituting  this  important  council  of 
revision.  But  the  federal  inferior  courts  of  justice  must,  I  pre- 
sume, be  fixed  in  the  several  respective  States,  and  consequently 
most  of  them  at  a  great  distance  from  the  seat  of  the  federal 
government.  The  almost  continual  operation  of  the  council 
of  revision  upon  the  acts  of  the  national  parliament,  and  upon 
their  negative  of  the  acts  of  the  several  State  legislatures,  will 
require  that  this  council  should  be  easily  and  speedily  convened, 
and  consequently,  that  only  the  judges  of  the  Supreme  Federal 
Court,  fixed  near  the  seat  of  government,  can  be  members  of  it. 
Their  number  will  be  small.  By  placing  the  Executive  in  three 
persons,  instead  of  one,  we  shall  not  only  increase  the  number  of 
the  council  of  revision  (which  I  have  endeavored  to  show  will 
want  increasing),  but  by  giving  to  each  of  the  three  a  vote  in  the 
council  of  revision,  we  shall  increase  the  strength  of  the  Execu- 
tive in  that  particular  circumstance  in  which  it  will  most  want 
strength — in  the  power  of  defending  itself  against  the  encroach- 
ments of  the  legislature.  These,  I  must  acknowledge,  are,  with 
Vol.  11—8 


114     ^^^^  ^^^  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

;me,  weighty  considerations  for  vesting  the  Executive  rather  in 
three  than  in  one  person. 

'  "  The  chief  advantages  which  have  been  urged  in  favor  of  unity 
in  the  Executive,  are  the  secresy,  the  dispatch,  the  vigor  and 
energy  which  the  government  will  derive  from  it,  especially  in 
time  of  war.  That  these  are  great  advantages,  I  shall  most 
readily  allow.  They  have  been  strongly  insisted  on  by  all 
monarchical  writers  ;  they  have  been  acknowledged  by  the  ablest 
and  most  candid  defenders  of  republican  government;  and  it 
cannot  be  denied  that  a  monarchy  possesses  them  in  a  much 
greater  degree  than  a  republic.  Yet  perhaps  a  little  reflection 
may  incline  us  to  doubt  whether  these  advantages  are  not  greater 
in  theory  than  in  practice,  or  lead  us  to  enquire  whether  there  is 
not  some  pervading  principle  in  republican  government  which 
sets  at  naught  and  tramples  upon  this  boasted  superiority,  as 
hath  been  experienced  to  their  cost,  by  most  monarchies  which 
have  been  imprudent  enough  to  invade  or  attack  their  republi- 
can neighbors,  f  This  invincible  principle  is  to  be  found  in  the 
love,  the  affection,  the  attachment  of  the  citizens  to  their  laws» 
to  their  freedom,  and  to  their  country.  Every  husbandman  will 
be  quickly  converted  into  a  soldier  when  he  knows  and  feels 
that  he  is  to  fight  not  in  defence  of  the  rights  of  a  particular 
family,  or  a  prince,  but  for  his  own.  This  is  the  true  construc- 
tion of  the  pro  arts  et  focis  which  has,  in  all  ages,  performed  such 
wonders. '  It  was  this  which  in  ancient  times  enabled  the  little 
cluster  of  Grecian  republics  to  resist,  and  almost  constantly  to 
defeat,  the  Persian  monarch.  It  was  this  which  supported  the 
States  of  Holland  against  a  body  of  veteran  troops  through  a 
thirty  years'  war^with  Spain,  then  the  greatest  monarchy  in 
Europe,  and  finally  rendered  them  victorious.  {  It  is  this  which 
preserves  the  freedom  and  independence  of  the  Swiss  Cantons  in 
the  midst  of  the  most  powerful  nations.  '  And  who  that  reflects 
seriously  upon  the  situation  of  America,  in  the  beginning  of  the 
late  war — ^without  arms — without  soldiers — without  trade,  money 
or  credit,  in  a  manner  destitute  of  all  resources,  but  must  ascribe 
our  success  to  this  pervading,  all-powerful  principle  ? 

"  We  have  not  yet  been  able  to  define  the  powers  of  the  Execu- 
tive, and  however  moderately  some  gentlemen  may  talk  or  think 
upon  the  subject,  I  believe  there  is  a  general  tendency  to  a  strong 


EXECUTIVE  CONSISTING  OF   THREE  PERSONS.      II5 

Executive,  and  I  am  inclined  to  think  a  strong  Executive  necessary.  ^ 
If  strong  and  extensive  powers  are  vested  in  the  Executive,  and 
that  executive  consists  only  of  one  person,  the  government  will 
of  course  degenerate  (for  I  will  call  it  degeneracy)  into  a  mon* 
archy — a  government  so  contrary  to  the  genius  of  the  people 
that  they  will  reject  even  the  appearance  of  it.  I  consider  the 
federal  government  as  in  some  measure  dissolved  by  the  meeting 
of  this  Convention.  Are  there  no  dangers  to  be  apprehended 
from  procrastinating  the  time  between  the  breaking  up  of  this 
Assembly  and  the  adoption  of  a  new  system  of  government  ?  I 
dread  the  interval.  If  it  should  not  be  brought  to  an  issue  in 
the  course  of  the  first  year  the  consequences  may  be  fatal.  Have 
not  the  different  parts  of  this  extensive  government,  the  several 
States  of  which  it  is  composed  a  right  to  expect  an  equal  partici- 
pation in  the  Executive,  as  the  best  means  of  securing  an  equal 
attention  to  their  interests  ?  Should  an  insurrection,  a  rebellion 
or  invasion  happen  in  New  Hampshire  when  the  single  supreme 
magistrate  is  a  citizen  of  Georgia,  would  not  the  people  of  New 
Hampshire  naturally  ascribe  any  delay  in  defending  them  to  such 
a  circumstance  and  vice  versa  f  (  li  the  Executive  is  vested  in 
three  persons,  one  chosen  from  the  Northern,  one  from  the 
Middle,  and  one  from  the  Southern  States,  will  it  not  contribute 
to  quiet  the  minds  of  the  people  and  convince  them  that  there 
will  be  proper  attention  paid  to  their  respective  concerns  ?  Will 
not  three  men  so  chosen  bring  with  them,  into  office,  a  more  per- 
fect and  extensive  knowledge  of  the  real  interests  of  this  great 
Union  ?  {  Will  not  such  a  mode  of  appointment  be  the  most 
effectual  means  of  preventing  cabals  and  intrigues  between  the 
legislature  and  the  candidates  for  this  office,  especially  with 
those  candidates  who  from  their  local  situation,  near  the  seat  of 
the  federal  government,  will  have  the  greatest  temptations  and 
the  greatest  opportunities  ?  Will  it  not  be  the  most  effectual 
means  of  checking  and  counteracting  the  aspiring  views  of 
dangerous  and  ambitious  men,  and  consequently  the  best  secur- 
ity for  the  stability  and  duration  of  our  government  upon  the 
invaluable  principles  of  liberty  ?  These  Sir,  are  some  of  my 
motives  for  preferring  an  Executive  consisting  of  three  persons 
rather  than  of  one." ' 

'  Mason  Papers. 


Il6     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

Edmund  Randolph  advocated  in  the  Convention  this  sug- 
gestion of  his  colleague,  that  the  Executive  should  consist 
of  three  members,  taken  from  the  three  sections  of  the 
country.  . 

On  Wednesday,  June  6th,  the  important  question  was., 
debated  as  to  the  election  of  the  first  branch  of  the  legis- 
lature. Should  it  be  by  the  State  legislatures  or  by  the 
people  ?  The  latter  method,  embraced  in  the  Virginia  plan, 
was  now  advocated  by  both  Madison  and  Mason.  "  Under 
the  existing  Confederacy,"  said  George  Mason,  "  Congress 
represent  the  States  and  not  the  people  of  the  States  ;  their 
acts  operate  on  the  States,  not  on  the  individuals.  The  case 
will  be  changed  in  the  new  plan  of  government.  The  people 
will  be  represented  ;  they  ought  therefore  to  choose  the 
Representatives.  The  requisites  in  actual  representation 
are,  that  the  Representatives  should  sympathize  with  their 
constituents ;  should  think  as  they  think,  and  feel  as  they 
feel ;  and  that  for  these  purposes  they  should  be  residents 
among  them.  Much,  he  said,  had  been  alleged  against 
democratic  elections.  He  admitted  that  much  might  be 
said  ;  but  it  was  to  be  considered  that  no  government  was 
free  from  imperfections  and  evils ;  and  that  improper  elec- 
tions in  many  instances  were  inseparable  from  republican 
governments.  But  compare  these  with  the  advantage  of 
this  form,  in  favor  of  the  rights  of  the  people,  in  favor 
of  human  nature!  He  was  persuaded  there  was  a  better 
chance  for  proper  elections  by  the  people,  if  divided  into 
large  districts,  than  by  the  State  Legislatures.  Paper-money 
had  been  issued  by  the  latter,  when  the  former  were  against 
it.  Was  it  to  be  supposed  that  the  State  Legislatures,  then, 
would  not  send  to  the  National  Legislature  patrons  of  such 
projects,  if  the  choice  depended  on  them."  *  The  Conven- 
tion recurring  again  to  the  Executive,  the  resolution  to 
give  the  latter  power,  with  the  assistance  of  some  of  the 
judiciary,  to  revise  the  laws  passed  by  the  legislature,  was 
reconsidered,  and  Colonel  Mason  was  for  "  giving  all  possi- 

*  •*  Madison  Pai>crs,"  vol.  ii.,  p.  803. 


SENATE  APPOINTED  BY  STATE  ASSEMBLIES.       11/ 

ble  weight  to  the  revisionary  institution.  The  executive 
power,"  he  thought,  "  ought  to  be  well  secured  against 
legislative  usurpations  on  it.  The  purse  and  the  sword 
ought  never  to  get  into  the  same  hands,  whether  legislative 
or  executive."  ' 

On  the  following  day  another  great  point  in  the  forma- 
tion of  the  Constitution  was  debated.  The  motion  was 
made  by  Mr.  Dickinson  for  the  appointment  of  the  Senate 
by  the  State  legislatures,  and  carried  in  the  affirmative. 
George  Mason  was  the  last  one  to  speak  on  this  occasion. 
"  Whatever  power,"  he  said,  "  may  be  necessary  for  the 
national  government,  a  certain  portion  must  necessarily  be 
left  with  the  States.  It  is  impossible  for  one  power  to 
pervade  the  extreme  parts  of  the  United  States,  so  as  to 
carry  equal  justice  to  them.  The  State  Legislatures  also 
ought  to  have  some  means  of  defending  themselves  against 
encroachments  of  the  national  government.  In  every  other 
department  we  have  studiously  endeavoured  to  provide  for 
its  self-defence.  Shall  we  leave  the  States  alone  unprovided 
with  the  means  for  this  purpose?  And  what  better  means 
can  we  provide,  than  the  giving  them  some  share  in,  or 
rather  to  make  them  a  constituent  part  of,  the  national 
establishment  ?  There  is  danger  on  both  sides,  no  doubt ; 
but  we  have  only  seen  the  evils  arising  on  the  side  of  the 
State  governments.  Those  on  the  other  side  remain  to  be 
displayed.  The  example  of  Congress  does  not  apply. 
Congress  had  no  power  to  carry  their  acts  into  execution,  as 
the  national  government  will  have."  •  The  thirteenth  resolu- 
tion of  the  Virginia  plan,  providing  for  making  amendments 
to  the  Constitution  without  the  assent  of  the  legislature  of 
the  Union,  came  up  for  consideration  on  the  nth,  and 
Colonel  Mason  urged  the  necessity  of  such  a  provision  : 

"  The  plan  now  to  be  formed  will  certainly  be  defective,  as  the 
Confederation  has  been  found  on  trial  to  be.  Amendments,  there- 
fore, will  be  necessary  ;  and  it  will  be  better  to  provide  for  them 

»  IHd,,  p.  8ii.  •  IHd,,  p.  82a 


Il8      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON 

in  an  easy,  regular  and  constitutional  way,  than  to  trust  to  chance 
and  violence.  It  would  be  improper  to  require  the  consent  of 
the  national  legislature,  because  they  may  abuse  their  power, 
and  refuse  their  assent  on  that  very  account.  The  opportunity 
for  such  an  abuse  may  be  the  fault  of  the  Constitution  calling 
for  amendment."  * 

George  Mason  seconded  a  motion  made  by  Madison  the 
following  day,  relating  to  the  payment  of  members  of  the 
federal  legislature.  He  thought  "  that  it  would  be  improper 
to  leave  the  wages  to  be  regulated  by  the  States, — first  the 
different  States  would  make  different  provision  for  their 
representatives,  and  an  inequality  would  be  felt  among  them, 
whereas  he  thought  they  ought  to  be  in  all  respects  equal ; 
secondly,  the  parsimony  of  the  States  might  reduce  the 
provision  so  low,  that,  as  had  already  happened  in  choosing 
delegates  to  Congress,  the  question  would  be,  not  who  were 
most  fit  to  be  chosen,  but  who  were  most  willing  to  serve."  • 
The  qualification  for  the  age  of  Senators  was  fixed  at  thirty. 
Among  George  Mason's  memoranda  of  the  Convention  are 
this  note  and  resolve,  showing  his  agency  in  an  important 
part  of  the  Convention's  work : 

*'  G.  Mason  begs  the  favor  of  Maj.  Jackson  to  correct  the 
following  Resolution,  in  the  manner  it  hath  been  agreed  to  by 
the  Convention. 

''  4.  Resolved,  That  the  members  of  the  second  branch  of  the 
legislature  of  the  United  States  ought  to  be  chosen  by  the  indi-. 
vidual  legislatures,  to  be  of  the  age  of  thirty  years  at  least,  to 
hold  their  offices  for  the  term  of  six  years,  one  third  to  go  out 
biennially  ;  to  be  ineligible  to  and  incapable  of  holding  any  office 
under  the  authority  of  the  United  States,  except  those  peculiarly 
belonging  to  the  functions  of  the  second  branch,  during  the 
term  for  which  they  were  chosen  and  for  one  year  thereafter.*** 

The  Committee  of  the  Whole  had  debated  from  day  to 
day  the  resolutions  contained  in  the  Virginia  plan,  and  on 

*  IHd,»  p.  844.  *  Ibid,^  p.  849.  '  Mas(in  l*a|>ers. 


VIRGINIA   AND  NEW  JERSEY  PLANS  COMPARED.      II9 

the  13th  of  June  they  reported  nineteen  resolutions  based 
upon  those  of  Virginia,  forming  a  system  of  government  in 
outline.  On  the  following  day  Mr.  Paterson,  of  New  Jersey, 
asked  for  time  to  prepare  another  plan  founded  on  the  Ar- 
ticles of  Confederation.  This  was  submitted  to  the  Conven- 
tion on  the  15th.  The  Virginia  and  the  New  Jersey  plan 
were  contrasted  briefly  by  one  of  the  members : 

Virginia  plan  proposes  two  branches  in  the  legislature. 
Jersey,  a  single  legislative  body. 

Virginia,  the  legislative  powers  derived  from  the  people. 
Jersey,  from  the  States. 
Virginia,  a  single  executive. 
Jersey,  more  than  one. 

Virginia,  a  majority  of  the  legislature  can  act. 
Jersey,  a  small  majprity  can  control. 

Virginia,  the  legislature  can  legislate  on  all  national  concerns. 
Jersey,  only  on  limited  objects. 
Virginia,  legislature  to  negative  all  State  laws. 
Jersey,   giving  power  to  the  executive  to  compel  obedience 
by  force. 

Virginia,  to  remove  the  executive  by  impeachment. 
Jersey,  on  application  of  a  majority  of  the  States. 
Virginia,  for  the  establishment  of  inferior  judiciary  tribunals. 
Jersey,  no  provision.' 

Neither  of  these  plans  commended  themselves  to  men  like 
Hamilton,  who  wanted  a  strong  government,  and  were 
afraid  of  democracy  or  giving  power  to  the  people.  He 
thought  the  Virginia  plan  "  but  pork  still  with  a  little  change 
of  the  sauce.'*  The  Articles  of  Confederation  amended,  as 
in  the  New  Jersey  plan,  set  forth  a  government  approved  of 
by  the  opposite  wing  of  the  Convention,  consisting  of  men 
like  Lansing,  who  professed  an  ultra  devotion  to  the  rights 
and  autonomy  of  the  States,  yet  strangely  enough  were 
ready  to  admit  the  use  of  force  against  them  by  the  general 
government.     George  Mason,   more   consistent   both   as   a 

'  Yates'  Minutes,  Elliot,  vol.  i.,  p  414. 


I20      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

champion  of  State  sovereignty  and  a  believer  in  the  rights 
of  the  people,  sought  to  give  each  idea  its  practical  exposi> 
tion  in  the  new  government.  Irt  a  debate,  June  20th,  on 
giving  two  branches  to  the  legislature,  Colonel  Mason 
summed  up  the  arguments  in  its  favor,  replying  to  those 
who  opposed  it.  Paterson's  propositions  had  been  re. 
jected  by  the  committee  the  day  before,  and  the  nineteen 
resolutions  based  on  the  Virginia  plan  were  again  reported. 
The  second  resolution  referred  to  the  constitution  of  the 
legislature. 

''  He  did  not  expect  this  point  would  have  been  reagitated. 
The  essential  differences  between  the  two  plans  had  been  clearly 
stated.  The  principal  objections  against  that  of  Mr.  Randolph 
were,  the  want  of  power ^  and  the  want  of  practicability.  There 
can  be  no  weight  in  the  first,  as  the  fiat  is  not  to  be  here^  but  in  the 
people.  [The  power  in  the  Convention  to  frame  an  entirely  new 
Constitution  is  meant  here.]  He  thought  with  his  colleague  (Mr. 
Randolph)  that  there  were,  besides,  certain  crises,  in  which  all 
the  ordinary  cautions  yielded  to  public  necessity.  He  gave  as 
an  example,  the  eventual  treaty  with  Great  Britain,  in  forming 
which  the  Commissioners  of  the  United  States  had  boldly  disre- 
garded the  improvident  shackles  of  Congress  ;  had  given  to  their 
country  an  honorable  and  happy  peace,  and  instead  of  being 
censured  for  the  transgression  of  their  powers  had  raised  to 
themselves  a  monument  more  durable  than  brass.  The  imprac^ 
ticability  of  gaining  the  public  concurrence,  he  thought,  was  still 
more  groundless.  Mr.  Lansing  had  cited  the  attempts  of  Con> 
gress  to  gain  an  enlargement  of  their  powers,  and  had  inferred, 
from  the  miscarriage  of  these  attempts,  the  hopelessness  of  the 
plan  which  he  (Mr.  Lansing)  opposed.  He  thought  a  very  dif- 
ferent inference  ought  to  have  been  drawn,  viz.,  that  the  plan 
which  Mr.  Lansing  espoused,  and  which  proposed  to  augment 
the  powers  of  Congress,  never  could  be  expected  to  succeed.  He 
meant  not  to  throw  any  reflections  on  Congress  as  a  body,  much 
less  on  any  particular  members  of  it.  He  meant,  however,  to 
speak  his  sentiments  without  reserve  on  this  subject ;  it  was  a 
privilege  of  age,  and  perhaps  the  only  compensation  which  nature 
had  given  for  the  privation  of  so  many  other  enjoyments  ;  and 


TH^O  BRANCHES  IN   THE  LEGISLATURE.  121 

he  should  not  scruple  to  exercise  it  freely.  Is  it  to  be  thought 
that  the  people  of  America,  so  watchful  over  their  interests,  so 
jealous  of  their  liberties,  will  give  up  their  all,  will  surrender 
both  the  sword  and  the  purse,  to  the  same  body, — and  that,  too, 
not  chosen  immediately  by  themselves  ?  They  never  will.  They 
never  ought.  Will  they  trust  such  a  body  with  the  regulation  of 
their  trade,  with  the  regulation  of  their  taxes,  with  all  the  other 
great  powers  which  are  in  contemplation  ?  Will  they  give  un- 
bounded confidence  to  a  secret  journal, — to  the  intrigues,  to  the 
factions,  which  in  the  nature  of  things  appertain  to  such  an 
assembly  ?  If  any  man  doubts  the  existence  of  these  characters 
of  Congress,  let  him  consult  their  Journals  for  the  years  seventy- 
eight,  seventy-nine,  and  eighty.  It  will  be  said,  that  if  the  people 
are  averse  to  parting  with  power,  why  is  it  hoped  that  they  will 
part  with  it  to  a  national  legislature  ?  The  proper  answer  is, 
that  in  this  case  they  do  not  part  with  power  ;  they  only  transfer 
it  from  one  set  of  immediate  representatives  to  another  set. 
Much  has  been  said  of  the  unsettled  state  of  the  mind  of  the 
people.  He  believed  the  mind  of  the  people  of  America,  as 
elsewhere,  was  unsettled  as  to  some  points,  but  settled  as  to 
others.  In  two  points  he  was  sure  it  was  well  settled, — first,  in 
an  attachment  to  republican  government ;  secondly,  in  an  attach- 
ment to  more  than  one  branch  in  the  legislature.  Their  consti- 
tutions accord  so  generally  in  both  these  circumstances,  that 
they  seem  almost  to  have  been  preconcerted.  This  must  either 
have  been  a  miracle,  or  have  resulted  from  the  genius  of  the 
people.  The  only  exceptions  to  the  establishment  of  two  branches 
in  the  legislature  are  the  State  of  Pennsylvania  and  Congress  ; 
and  the  latter  the  only  single  one  not  chosen  by  the  people  them- 
selves. What  has  been  the  consequence  ?  The  people  have  been 
constantly  averse  to  giving  that  body  further  powers. 

"  It  was  acknowledged  by  Mr.  Paterson  that  his  plan  could  not 
be  enforced  without  military  coercion.  Does  he  consider  the 
force  of  this  concession  ?  The  most  jarring  elements  of  nature, 
fire  and  water  themselves,  are  not  more  incompatible  than  such  a 
mixture  of  civil  liberty  and  military  execution.  Will  the  militia 
march  from  one  State  into  another,  in  order  to  collect  the  arrears 
of  taxes  from  the  delinquent  members  of  the  republic  ?  Will 
they  maintain  an  army  for  this  purpose  ?  Will  not  the  citizens  of 


122      UPE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OP  GEORGE  MASON 

the  invaded  State  assist  one  another,  till  they  rise  as  one  man  and 
shake  off  the  Union  altogether  ?  Rebellion  is  the  only  case  in 
which  the  military  force  of  the  State  can  be  properly  exerted 
against  its  citizens.  In  one  point  of  view,  he  was  struck  with 
horror  at  the  prospect  of  recurring  to  this  expedient  To  punish 
the  non-payment  of  taxes  with  death  was  a  severity  not  yet 
adopted  by  despotism  itself  ;  yet  this  unexampled  cruelty  would 
be  mercy  compared  to  a  military  collection  of  revenue  in  which  the 
bayonet  could  make  no  discrimination  between  the  innocent  and 
the  guilty.  He  took  this  occasion  to  repeat,  that,  notwithstand- 
ing his  solicitude  to  establish  a  national  government,  he  never 
would  agree  to  abolish  the  State  governments,  or  render  them  ab- 
solutely insignificant  They  were  as  necessary  as  the  general  gov- 
ernment, and  he  would  be  equally  careful  to  preserve  them.  He 
was  aware  of  the  difficulty  of  drawing  the  line  between  them,  but 
hoped  it  was  not  insurmountable.  The  Convention,  though  com- 
prising so  many  distinguished  characters,  could  not  be  expected 
to  make  a  faultless  government  And  he  would  prefer  trusting 
to  posterity  the  amendment  of  its  defects,  rather  than  to  push  the 
experiment  too  far." 

Judge  Yates,  who  gives  his  abstract  of  the  debates  in  the 
first  person  always,  has  reported  this  speech  of  Geoi^e 
Mason's  a  little  differently,  and  of  course,  as  he  only  pro- 
fessed to  give  minutes,  much  more  briefly : 

''These  measures  are  supported  by  one  who,  at  his  time 
of  life,  has  little  to  hope  or  expect  from  any  government 
.  .  .  What !  would  you  use  military  force  to  compel  the 
observance  of  a  social  compact  ?  It  is  destructive  to  the  rights 
of  the  people.  Do  you  expect  the  militia  will  do  it  ?  or  do 
you  mean  a  standing  army  ?  The  first  will  never  on  such  an  oc- 
casion, exert  any  power  ;  and  the  latter  may  turn  its  arms  against 
the  government  which  employs  them.  I  never  will  consent  to 
destroy  State  governments,  and  will  ever  be  as  careful  to  preserve 
the  one  as  the  other.  .  .  .  That  the  one  government  will  be 
productive  of  disputes  and  jealousies  against  the  other,  I  believe ; 
but  it  will  produce  mutual  safety.     I  shall  close  with  observing, 

*  •*  Madison  Papers,"  vol.,  ii.,  p.  912. 


REPRESENTATIVES  ELECTED  BY  THE  PEOPLE,       1 23 

that  though  some  have  expressed  much  warmth  on  this  and 
former  occasions,  I  can  excuse  it,  as  the  result  of  sudden  passion ; 
and  hope  that  although  we  may  differ  in  some  particular  points, 
if  we  mean  the  good  of  the  whole,  our  good  sense,  upon  re- 
flection, will  prevent  us  from  spreading  our  discontent  farther."  ' 

The  Convention  did  not  go  again  into  committee  of  the 
whole,  but  continued  to  debate  the  nineteen  resolutions 
from  the  19th  of  June  until  the  23d  of  July.  Some  of 
these  were  referred  to  grand  committees,  consisting  of  one 
member  from  each  State,  or  they  were  referred  to  select 
committees  consisting  of  five  members.  On  the  question 
of  the  election  of  the  first  branch  of  the  legislature,  it  was 
moved  that  it  should  be  as  each  State  legislature  directed, 
when  Colonel  Mason  was  again  on  his  feet : 

"  I  am  for  preserving  inviolably  the  democratic  branch  of  the 
government.  True  we  have  found  inconveniences  from  pure 
democracies  ;  but  if  we  mean  to  preserve  peace  and  real  freedom, 
they  must  necessarily  become  a  component  part  of  the  national 
system.  Change  this  necessary  principle,  and  if  the  government 
proceeds  to  taxation,  the  States  will  oppose  your  powers."  • 

When  the  motion  was  considered  of  the  election  of 
the  first  branch  for  two  years,  George  Mason  observed, 
"that  the  States  being  differently  situated,  such  a  rule 
ought  to  be  formed  as  would  put  them  as  nearly  as  possible 
on  a  level.  If  elections  were  annual,  the  middle  States 
would  have  a  great  advantage  over  the  extreme  ones.  He 
wished  them  to  be  biennial,  and  the  rather  as  in  that  case 
they  would  coincide  with  the  periodical  elections  of  South 
Carolina,  as  well  of  the  other  States." "  On  the  subject  of  the 
"  fixed  stipends  to  be  paid  out  of  the  national  treasury  " 
to  the  representatives,  Colonel  Mason  moved  to  change  the 
phraseology  of  the  resolve ;  that  is  to  say,  **  to  receive  an 

»  Elliot's  '•  Debates,"  vol.  i.,  p.  429. 

•  IHd,,  p.  433. 

•  *'  Madison  Papers,"  vol.  ii.,  p.  930. 


124      ^^^^  ^^^  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON 

adequate  compensation  for  their  services,  and  to  be  paid  out 
of  the  treasury,"  which  motion  was  agreed  to.* 

Jeflferson,  in  characterizing  George  Mason's  merits  as  a 
public  speaker,  notices  the  "  touch  of  biting  cynicism  **  which 
sometimes  seasoned  his  arguments.  Examples  of  this  qual- 
ity are  to  be  found  in  the  following  passages.  The  question 
of  the  age  required  for  members  of  Congress  was  brought 
up  by  Colonel  Mason,  and  he  moved  to  insert  "  twenty-five 
years  of  age  as  a  qualification  for  members  of  the  first 
branch."  He  **  thought  it  absurd  that  a  man  to-day  should 
not  be  permitted  by  the  law  to  make  a  bargain  for  himself, 
and  to-morrow  should  be  authorized  to  manage  the  affairs 
of  a  great  nation.  It  was  the  more  extraordinary  as  every 
man  carried  with  him,  in  his  own  experience,  a  scale  for 
measuring  the  deficiency  of  young  politicians;  since  he 
would,  if  interrogated,  be  obliged  to  declare  that  his  politi- 
cal opinions  at  the  age  of  twenty-one  were  too  crude  and 
erroneous  to  merit  an  influence  on  public  measures.  It  had 
been  said,  that  Congress  had  proved  a  good  school  for  our 
young  men.  It  might  be  so,  for  anything  he  knew ;  but  if 
it  were,  he  chose  that  they  should  bear  the  expence  of  their 
own  education." "  The  exclusive  clause  in  the  third  resolve 
being  under  consideration,  George  Mason  spoke  as  follows : 

'*  It  seems  as  if  it  were  taken  for  granted  that  all  offices  will 
be  filled  by  the  Executive,  while  I  think  many  will  remain  in  the 
gift  of  the  legislature.  In  either  case  it  is  necessary  to  shut  the 
door  against  corruption.  If  otherwise,  they  may  make  or  multi- 
ply offices  in  order  to  fill  them.  Are  gentlemen  in  earnest  when 
they  suppose  that  this  exclusion  will  prevent  the  first  characters 
from  coming  forward  ?  Are  we  not  struck  at  seeing  the  luxury 
and  venality  which  has  already  crept  in  among  us  ?  If  not 
checked,  we  shall  have  ambassadors  to  every  petty  State  in 
Europe ;  the  little  republic  of  St.  Marino  not  excepted.  We 
must  in  the  present  system  remove  the  temptation.  I  admire 
many  parts  of  the  British  constitution  and  government,  but  I 

'  Yates'  Minutes,  Elliot,  vol.  i.,  p.  436. 
•  "  Madison  Papers,"  vol.  ii..  p.  936. 


% 


MASON  REPUES  TO  MADISON  AND  WILSON,        12$ 

detest  their  corruption.  Why  has  the  power  of  the  Crown  in- 
creased, so  remarkably  increased,  the  last  century  ?  A  stranger, 
by  reading  their  laws,  would  suppose  it  considerably  diminished  ; 
and  yet  by  the  sole  power  of  appointing  the  increased  officers  of 
the  government,  corruption  pervades  every  town  and  village  in 
the  kingdom.  If  such  a  restriction  should  abridge  the  right  of 
election,  it  is  still  necessary,  as  it  will  prevent  the  people  from 
ruining  themselves.  And  will  not  the  same  causes  here  produce 
the  same  effects  ?  I  consider  this  clause  as  the  corner-stone  on 
which  our  liberties  depend ;  and  if  we  strike  it  out,  we  are  erect- 
ing a  fabric  for  our  destruction."  * 

The  subject  was  continued  on  the  following  day,  June 
23d,  when  Madison  renewed  his  motion  to  render  the  mem- 
bers of  the  first  branch  "  ineligible  during  their  term  of  ser- 
vice, and  for  one  year  after,  to  such  offices  only,  as  should 
be  established,  or  the  emolument  augmented,  by  the  legis- 
lature of  the  United  States  during  the  time  of  their  being 
members."  Colonel  Mason  "thought  the  motion  of  his 
colleague  but  a  partial  remedy  for  the  evil.  He  appealed 
to  him  as  a  witness  of  the  shameful  partiality  of  the  legis- 
lature of  Virginia  to  its  own  members.  He  enlarged  on 
the  abuses  and  corruption  in  the  British  Parliament  con- 
nected with  the  appointment  of  its  members.  He  could  not 
suppose  that  a  sufficient  number  of  citizens  could  not  be 
found  who  would  be  ready,  without  the  inducement  of  eligi- 
bility to  offices,  to  undertake  the  legislative  service.  Genius 
and  virtue,  it  may  be  said  [he  here  alluded  to  some  remarks 
of  Mr.  Wilson],  ought  to  be  encouraged.  Genius,  for  aught 
he  knew  might ;  but  that  virtue  should  be  encouraged  by 
such  a  species  of  venality,  was  an  idea  that  at  least  had  the 
merit  of  being  new.** "  Yates,  in  reporting  this  speech,  gives 
the  substance  of  the  last  clause  in  these  words : 

'*  It  is  asserted  that  it  will  be  very  difficult  to  find  men  suffi- 
ciently qualified  as  legislators  without  the  inducement  of  emolu- 

>  Yates*  Minutes,  Elliot,  vol.  i.,  p.  437. 
'  *'  Madison  Papers,"  vol.  ii.,  p.  940. 


126     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON, 

ments.  I  do  believe  that  men  of  genius  will  be  deterred  unless 
possessed  of  great  virtues.  We  may  well  dispense  with  the  first 
characters  when  destitute  of  virtue.  I  should  wish  them  never 
to  come  forward.  But  if  we  do  not  provide  against  corruption, 
our  government  will  soon  be  at  an  end ;  nor  would  I  wish  to 
put  a  man  of  virtue  in  the  way  of  temptation.  Evasions  and 
caballing  [he  continued]  would  evade  the  amendment.  Nor 
would  the  danger  be  less,  if  the  executive  has  the  appointment 
of  officers.  The  first  three  or  four  years  we  might  go  on  well 
enough,  but  what  would  be  the  case  afterwards  ?  I  will  add,  that 
such  a  government  ought  to  be  refused  by  the  people ;  and  it 
will  be  refused."  * 

On  the  25th  of  June,  the  vexed  question  of  the  mode  of 
appointing  the  Senate  was  brought  up,  Mr.  Wilson  moving 
that  the  members  be  elected  by  electors  chosen  by  the 
people.  This  was  a  point  which  divided,  as  a  class,  the 
large  and  small  States,  the  former  advocating  proportional 
representation  in  both  Houses,  the  latter  opposing  it,  and,  as 
Bancroft  observes,  the  election  of  the  Senate  by  the  State 
legislatures  was  looked  upon  "  as  the  stepping-stone  to  an 
equal  representation.**"  And  while  Virginia's  vote  went 
with  that  of  Pennsylvania  against  a  doctrine  so  important 
for  the  preservation  of  the  individual  commonwealth,  it  was 
one  of  Virginia's  representatives  who  consistently  supported 
it  as  a  pillar  of  States-rights.  "It  has  been  agreed,  on  all 
hands,"  said  George  Mason,  "  that  an  efficient  government 
is  necessary ;  that  to  render  it  such,  it  ought  to  have  the 
faculty  of  self-defence ;  that  to  render  its  different  branches 
effectual  each  of  them  ought  to  have  the  same  power  of 
self-defence.  He  did  not  wonder  that  such  an  agreement 
should  have  prevailed  on  these  points.  He  only  wondered 
that  there  should  be  any  disagreement  about  the  necessity 
of  allowing  the  State  governments  the  same  self-defence.  If 
they  are  to  be  preserved,  as  he  conceived  to  be  essential, 
they  certainly  ought  to  have  this  power ;  and  the  only  mode 

*  Yates'  Minutes,  Elliot, vol.  i.,  p.  440. 

'  '*  History  of  the  Constitution,"  vol.  ii.,  p.  56. 


THE   ''CONNECTICUT  compromise:*  12/ 

left  of  giving  it  to  them  was  by  allowing  them  to  appoint 
the  second  branch  of  the  national  legislature."  '  Dr.  John- 
son, of  Connecticut,  in  advocating  this  means  of  self-defence 
for  the  States,  gives  George  Mason  credit  as  the  author 
of  the  scheme.  "This  is  the  idea  of  Col.  Mason,  who 
appears  to  have  looked  to  the  bottom  of  this  matter."* 
Much  has  been  written,  of  late,  on  the  "  Connecticut  Com- 
promise," as  Bancroft  styles  it,  the  equal  representation  of 
the  States  in  the  Senate,  and  here  is  one  of  the  three  repre- 
sentatives from  Connecticut  who  urged  the  measure  upon 
the  Convention  avowing  that  it  was  the  "  idea  "  of  Colonel 
Mason,  that  the  States  should  appoint  the  members  of  the 
Senate,  the  "  stepping-stone  "  to  equal  representation.  The 
proportional  representation  in  the  first  branch,  which  would 
make  the  large  States  more  powerful  there,  was  acquiesced 
in  by  the  small  States  in  consideration  that  an  equality  in 
the  Senate  would  give  them  the  same  voice  in  its  councils  as 
their  more  powerful  sisters.  The  small  States,  led  by  Con- 
necticut, finally  effected  this  settlement  in  the  Convention. 
But  Sherman,  Ellsworth,  and  Johnson  only  made  practical 
an  idea  independently  evolved  by  the  Virginia  statesman, 
who,  wiser  than  his  colleagues,  had  "  looked  to  the  bottom 
of  this  matter."  Madison,  in  the  Federalist^  frankly  avowed 
his  subsequent  conversion  to  the  equality  of  votes  in  the 
Senate,  which  he  opposed  throughout  the  sessions  of  the 
Convention.' 

A  recent  writer  says : 

"The  adoption  of  dififerent  bases  for  the  two  Houses,  the 
House  of  Representatives  representing  the  States  according  to 
population  while  the  Senate  represented  them  equally,  was  one 
of  the  most  important  pieces  of  work  which  the  Convention 
accomplished,  as  well  as  the  one  which  it  reached  most  unwil- 

*  Madison  Papers,  vol.  ii.,  p.  958. 
•/JiV/.,  p.  987. 

*  As  John  Dickinson,  representing  the  small  State  of  Delaware  in  the  Con- 
vention, made  the  motion  for  the  appointment  of  the  Senate  by  the  State  legis- 
latures, he  is  entitled  to  some  of  the  credit  for  this  measure. 


128     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

lingly.  All  the  States  experimenting  to  find  different  bases  for 
their  two  Houses,  Virginia  had  come  nearest  to  the  appearance 
of  the  final  result,  in  having  her  Senate  chosen  by  districts  and 
her  Representatives  by  counties  ;  and  as  the  Union  already  had 
its  'districts'  formed  (in  the  States)  one  might  think  that  the 
Convention  merely  followed  Virginia's  experience.  But  the  real 
process  was  far  different  and  more  circuitous.'* 

In  fact,  says  this  writer,  it  was  the  Connecticut  system, 
where  the  towns  were  equally  represented  in  the  lower 
House,  while  the  upper  one  was  chosen  from  the  whole 
people,  which  was  the  model  proposed  by  Connecticut  dele- 
gates to  the  Convention.*  George  Mason,  however,  stand- 
ing apart  from  his  colleagues,  did,  in  effect,  propose  the 
Virginia  constitution,  of  which  he  was  the  author,  as  a  type 
for  the  new  constitution,  when  he  advocated  both  ideas 
combined — equal  and  unequal  representation,  for  the  legis- 
lature of  the  Union,  or  the  choice  of  one  House  by  the 
people  and  of  the  other  by  the  States. 

In  regard  to  the  qualifications  of  senators.  Colonel  Mason 
thought  that  **one  important  object  in  constituting  the 
Senate  was  to  secure  the  rights  of  property.  To  give  them 
weight  and  firmness  for  this  purpose,  a  considerable  duration 
in  office  was  thought  necessary.  But  a  longer  term  than  six 
years  would  be  of  no  avail  in  this  respect,  if  needy  persons 
should  be  appointed.  He  suggested,  therefore,  the  pro- 
priety of  annexing  to  the  office  a  qualification  of  property. 
He  thought  this  would  be  very  practicable,  as  the  rules  of 
taxation  would  supply  a  scale  for  measuring  the  degree  of 
wealth  possessed  by  every  man."  ' 

It  was  now  nearly  the  last  of  June.  Five  weeks,  as  Dr. 
Franklin  anxiously  noted,  had  been  spent  in  trying  to 
reconcile  the  opposing  views  that  were  to  be  found  in  the 
Convention ;  to  steer  between  the  rock  of  centralized  gov- 
ernment and   the  whirlpool,  as  it  was  deemed,  of  a  pure 

>  *'  The  First  Century  of  the  Constitution/'  article  in  The  New  Princeton 
Review,  Sept.,  1887. 
•  Madison  "  Papers,"  vol.  ii..  p.  971. 


LETTER  TO  HIS  SON  GEORGE,  1 29 

confederation  ;  to  decide  upon  the  features  of  the  equitable 
via  media.  **  Groping  as  it  were  in  the  dark  to  find  political 
truth,  and  scarce  able  to  distinguish  it  when  they  found  it/' 
it  were  well,  Dr.  Franklin  thought  to  implore  for  them- 
selves each  day  the  Divine  guidance.  The  proposal  came  a 
little  late,  it  is  true,  and  there  might  be  reason  to  think,  as 
was  suggested,  that  it  would  alarm  the  people.  But  surely 
the  daily  consecration  was  needed,  and  the  proposition 
should  have  been  agreed  to.  On  the  question  for  allowing 
each  State  one  vote  in  the  Senate,  there  seemed  to  be 
at  this  time  no  hope  of  a  settlement.  It  was  then  deter- 
mined to  appoint  a  committee,  consisting  of  one  member 
from  each  State,  in  order,  if  possible,  to  effect  a  solution  of 
the  difficulty.  George  Mason  was  the  significant  choice 
from  Virginia,  and  the  Convention  adjourned  from  Monday 
the  2d,  to  Thursday  the  5th,  of  July. 

The  following  letters  were  written  by  Colonel  Mason  to 
George  Mason,  Jr.,  and  to  Beverley  Randolph  during  the 
month  of  June.  The  solemn  words  to  his  son  on  the  great 
responsibility  of  the  work  in  which  he  was  engaged,  evince 
George  Mason's  profound  sense  of  duty,  and  his  earnest 
desire  to  carry  out  its  obligations. 

PhiladbLPHIA,  June  ist,  1787. 

Dear  George : 

.  .  .  The  idea  I  formerly  mentioned  to  you,  before  the 
Convention  met,  of  a  great  national  council,  consisting  of  two 
branches  of  the  legislature,  a  judiciary  and  an  executive,  upon 
the  principle  of  fair  representation  in  the  legislature,  with  powers 
adapted  to  the  great  objects  of  the  Union,  and  consequently  a 
control  in  these  instances,  on  the  State  legislatures,  is  still  the 
prevalent  one.  Virginia  has  had  the  honor  of  presenting  the 
outlines  of  the  plan,  upon  which  the  convention  is  proceeding  ; 
but  so  slowly  that  it  is  impossible  to  judge  when  the  business  will 
be  finished,  most  probably  not  before  August— /esh'na  lente  may 
very  well  be  called  our  motto.  When  I  first  came  here,  judging 
from  casual  conversations  with  gentlemen  from  the  different 
States,  I  was  very  apprehensive  that  soured  and  disgusted  with 

Vol.  ll.-o 


130     LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON 

the  unexpected  evils  we  had  experienced  from  the  democratic 
principles  of  our  governments,  we  should  be  apt  to  run  into  the 
opposite  extreme,  and  in  endeavoring  to  steer  too  far  from 
Scylla,  we  might  be  drawn  into  the  vortex  of  Charybdis,  of 
which  I  still  think  there  is  some  danger,  though  I  have  the 
pleasure  to  find  in  the  convention,  many  men  of  fine  republican 
principles.  America  has  certainly,  upon  this  occasion,  drawn 
forth  her  first  characters  ;  there  are  upon  this  Convention  many 
gentlemen  of  the  most  respectable  abilities,  and  so  far  as  I  can 
discover,  of  the  purest  intentions.  The  eyes  of  the  United  States 
are  turned  upon  this  assembly,  and  their  expectations  raised  to  a 
very  anxious  degree. 

May  God  grant,  we  may  be  able  to  gratify  them,  by  establishing 
a  wise  and  just  government.  For  my  own  part,  I  never  before 
felt  myself  in  such  a  situation  ;  and  declare  I  would  not,  upon 
pecuniary  motives,  serve  in  this  convention  for  a  thousand 
pounds  per  day.  The  revolt  from  Great  Britain  and  the  for- 
mations of  our  new  governments  at  that  time,  were  nothing 
compared  to  the  great  business  now  before  us :  there  was  then 
a  certain  degree  of  enthusiasm,  which  inspired  and  supported 
the  mind  ;  but  to  view,  through  the  calm,  sedate  medium  of  rea- 
son the  influence  which  the  establishment  now  proposed  may 
have  upon  the  happiness  or  misery  of  millions  yet  unborn,  is  an 
object  of  such  magnitude,  as  absorbs,  and  in  a  manner  suspends 
the  operations  of  the  human  understanding. 

Remember  me  kindly  to  Betsy  and  all  the  family  ;  let  me  know 

from  time  to  time  how  they  do.     I  am,  dear  George, 

Your  affectionate  father, 

G.  Mason. 

P.  S.  All  communications  of  the  proceedings  are  forbidden 
during  the  sitting  of  the  Convention  ;  this  I  think  was  a  necessary 
precaution  to  prevent  misrepresentations  or  mistakes  ;  there  be- 
ing a  material  difference  between  the  appearance  of  a  subject  in 
its  first  crude  and  undigested  shape,  and  after  it  shall  have  been 
properly  matured  and  arranged. 

I  would  thank  you  to  desire  Thomson  to  send  me,  if  he  can 
find  it,  the  plan  I  drew,  two  or  three  years  ago,  for  equalizing  the 
Virginia  land  tax,  which  I  have  promised  a  copy  of  to  the  North 
Carolina  delegates ;  I  believe  he  will  find  it  among  the  loose 


LETTER  TO  BEVERLEY  RANDOLPH.  131 

papers  on  the  right  hand  division  of  the  second  drawer  in  my 
desk  and  bookcase  in  the  little  parlor  ;  and  I  should  be  glad  to 
have  the  strictures  I  wrote  some  time  ago,  upon  the  port  bill ; 
but  where  it  is  I  don't  remember ;  it  lay  among  the  loose  papers 
in  one  of  the  dining-room  windows,  which  a  little  before  I  left 
home  I  tied  up  in  a  bundle  and  I  believe  put  into  one  of  the 
pigeon-holes  in  the  bookcase  in  the  dining-room,  but  am  not  cer- 
tain. Pray  desire  him  in  looking  over  the  papers,  not  to  dissort 
them,  but  make  them  up  again  together,  in  the  same  separate 
bundles,  and  where  any  of  the  bundles  arc  endorsed,  to  make 

them  up  again  with  the  endorsations  on  the  outside. 

G.  M.» 

George  Mason  to  Hon.  Beverley  Randolph : 

Philadelphia.  June  30th,  1787. 
Dear  Sir  : 

The  Convention  having  resolved  that  none  of  their  proceedings 
should  be  communicated  during  their  sitting,  puts  it  out  of  my 
power  to  give  you  any  particular  information  upon  the  subject. 
Fesiina  Unte  seems  hitherto  to  have  been  our  maxim.  Things, 
however,  are  now  drawing  to  that  point  on  which  some  of  the 
fundamental  principles  must  be  decided,  and  two  or  three  days 
will  probably  enable  us  to  judge — which  is  at  present  very 
doubtful — whether  any  sound  and  effectual  system  can  be  estab- 
lished or  not.  If  it  cannot,  I  presume  we  shall  not  continue 
here  much  longer  ;  if  it  can,  we  shall  probably  be  detained  'til 
September. 

I  feel  myself  disagreeably  circumstanced  in  being  the  only 
member  of  the  Assembly  in  the  Virginia  delegation,  and,  conse- 
quently, if  any  system  shall  be  recommended  by  the  Convention 
that  the  whole  weight  of  explanation  must  fall  upon  me  ;  and  if 
I  should  be  prevented  by  sickness  or  accident  from  attending  the 
Assembly,  that  it  will  be  difficult  for  the  Assembly  to  obtain  such 
information  as  may  be  necessary  upon  the  subject,  as  I  presume 
that  in  the  progress  through  the  legislature  many  questions  may 
be  asked  and  inquiries  made,  in  which  satisfactory  information, 
from  time  to  time,  can  hardly  be  given  but  by  a  member  of  the 
House  in  his  place. 

'  Mason  Papers  ;  Nilcs*  "Principles  and  Acts  of  the  Revolution/*  p.  138  ; 
Bancroft's  "  History  of  the  Constitution,"  vol.  ii.,  p.  424. 


132      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

We  have  just  received  information  here  that  Mr.  Wythe  has 
made  a  resignation,  and  does  not  intend  to  return.  Under  these 
circumstances  I  would  beg  leave  to  submit  it  to  the  consideration 
of  the  Executive,  whether  it  might  not  be  proper  to  fill  the  vacancy 
in  the  delegation,  occasioned  by  Mr.  Wythe's  resignation,  with 
some  member  of  the  Assembly.  Mr.  Corbin  being  here,  his  ap- 
pointment, if  it  shall  be  judged  proper,  would  occasion  little 
additional  charge  to  the  State,  if  the  Convention  should,  unfor- 
tunately, break  up  without  adopting  any  substantial  system — that 
event  will  happen,  I  think — before  the  appointment  can  reach 
this  place  ;  if  the  Convention  continues  to  proceed  on  the  busi- 
ness, with  a  prospect  of  success,  Mr.  Corbin  is  on  the  spot ;  and 
I  doubt  it  may  be  difficult  to  prevail  on  any  member  of  the 
Assembly,  now  in  Virginia,  to  come  hither  at  this  late  stage  of 
the  business. 

I  beg  you  will  do  me  the  favor  to  lay  this  subject  before  the 
Council,  and  believe  me,  with  the  greatest  esteem  and  regard. 

Dear  Sir, 
Your  most  obedient  servant, 

G.  Mason.* 

The  report  of  the  grand  committee,  which  was  made  on 
the  5th  of  July,  consisted  of  two  propositions  made  mutually 
conditional.  The  compromise  consisted  in  giving  the  first 
branch  of  the  legislature  the  power  of  originating  money 
bills,  a  concession,  as  it  was  maintained,  made  by  the  small 
States  in  order  that  the  large  States  should  concede  the 
equal  vote  in  the  Senate.  There  had  been  hot  and  hasty 
words  in  the  Convention,  and  threats  of  secession,  and  of 
looking  to  foreign  countries  for  assistance.  And  it  was  felt 
that  a  crisis  had  come  and  a  determined  effort  must  be  made 
to  meet  it.  In  reply  to  animadversions  on  the  report,  George 
Mason  expLiincd  that  it ''  was  meant  not  as  a  specific  propo- 
sition to  be  adopted,  but  merely  as  a  general  ground  of 
accommodation.  There  must  be  some  accommodation  on 
this  point,  or  we  shall  make  little  further  progress  in  the 
work.     Accommodation  was  the  object  of  the  House  in  the 

*  **  Virginia  Calendar  Papers,"  vol.  iv.,  p.  310. 


YATES  AND  LANSING  LEAVE  THE   CONVENTION,      1 33 

appointment  of  the  committee,  and  of  the  committee  in 
the  report  they  had  made.  And  however  liable  the  report 
might  be  to  objections,  he  thought  it  preferable  to  an  appeal 
to  the  world  by  the  different  sides,  as  had  been  talked  of  by 
some  gentlemen.  It  could  not  be  more  inconvenient  to  any 
gentleman  to  remain  absent  from  his  private  affairs,  than  it 
was  for  him,  but  he  would  bury  his  bones  in  this  city,  rather 
than  expose  his  country  to  the  consequences  of  a  dissolution 
of  the  Convention  without  anything  being  done."  *  A  mo- 
tion was  made  to  put  restrictions  upon  the  representation  of 
the  Western  States,  when  Colonel  Mason  said  "  the  case  of 
new  States  was  not  unnoticed  in  the  committee :  but  it  was 
thought,  and  he  was  himself  decidedly  of  opinion,  that  if 
they  made  a  part  of  the  Union,  they  ought  to  be  subject  to 
no  unfavorable  discriminations.  Obvious  considerations 
required  it.***  And  in  this  opinion  Edmund  Randolph 
concurred. 

The  minutes  of  Judge  Yates  cease  at  this  time,  as  he  and 
his  colleague,  Mr.  Lansing,  left  the  Convention  on  the  6th 
of  July,  thoroughly  dissatisfied  with  the  course  matters  were 
taking.  The  first  proposition  in  the  report  was  under  dis- 
cussion on  this  day.  This  fixed  the  representation  in  the 
first  branch  as  "  one  member  for  every  forty  thousand 
inhabitants.**  It  was  moved  by  Gouvemeur  Morris  to  refer 
this  to  a  select  committee  of  five.  With  it  went  the  clause 
relating  to  money  bills,  and  Dr.  Franklin  thought  they  could 
not  be  voted  for  separately.  George  Mason  then  suggested 
a  reference  of  the  rest  of  the  report  to  the  committee  just 
appointed.  He  urged  that "  the  consideration  which  weighed 
with  the  committee  [the  grand  committee  that  reported  on 
the  5th]  was,  that  the  first  branch  would  be  the  immediate 
representatives  of  the  people ;  the  second  would  not ;  should 
the  latter  have  the  power  of  giving  away  the  people*s  money, 
they  might  soon  forget  the  source  from  whence  they  received 
it.     We  might  soon  have  an  aristocracy.     He  had  been  much 

'  "Madison  Papers," vol.  ii.,  p.  1033. 
•  Ibid,^  p.  1035. 


134      ^JP^  ^^D  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON, 

concerned  at  the  principles  which  had  been  advanced  by 
some  gentlemen,  but  had  the  satisfaction  to  find  they  did 
not  generally  prevail.  He  was  a  friend  to  proportional 
representation  in  both  branches,  but  supposed  that  some 
points  must  be  yielded  for  the  sake  of  accommodation.*" 
The  clause  allowing  each  State  one  vote  in  the  second 
branch  was  taken  up  and  agreed  to  on  the  7th.  And  on  the 
9th  the  report  of  the  committee  of  five  on  the  clause  fixing 
representation  in  the  first  branch  of  the  legislature  was  given 
to  the  Convention.  This  altered  the  representation  from 
"  one  member  to  every  forty  thousand  inhabitants,"  and 
gave  fifty-six  members  for  the  first  Congress,  and  this  num- 
ber to  be  augmented  from  time  to  time.  The  change  did 
not  give  satisfaction,  and  the  first  part  of  the  report  was 
then  put  into  the  hands  of  another  grand  committee,  Madi- 
son this  time  being  the  member  selected  from  Virg^inia. 
And  here  the  representation  was  augmented  to  sixty-five 
members.  But  it  wa§  becoming  more  and  more  apparent 
that  the  question  of  the  balance  of  power  was  not  so  much 
between  the  large  and  small  States  as  between  the  Northern 
and  Southern  States,  and  the  Southern  members  contended 
that  the  changes  made  in  the  representation  of  the  House 
were  unfavorable  to  the  South.  Mr.  Madison  proposed  to 
double  the  number  from  each  State ;  some  of  the  Northern 
members  were  for  a  reduction,  urging  the  expense.  Mr. 
Gerry,  however,  proposed  to  increase  the  number.  George 
Mason  "  admitted  that  the  objection  drawn  from  the  con- 
sideration of  expense  had  weight  both  in  itself  and  as  the 
people  might  be  affected  by  it.  But  he  thought  it  out- 
weighed by  the  objections  against  the  smallness  of  the 
number.  Thirty-eight  will,  he  supposes,  as  being  a  majority 
of  sixty-five,  form  a  quorum.  Twenty  will  be  a  majority  of 
thirty-eight.  This  was  certainly  too  small  a  number  to  make 
laws  for  America.  They  would  neither  bring  with  them  all 
the  necessary  information  relative  to  local  interests,  nor 
possess    the    necessary   confidence   of    the    people.     After 

'  Ibid.,  pp.   1040-1042. 


THE  PROPER  RULE  OF  REPRESENTA  TION.  1 35 

doubling  the  number,  the  laws  might  still  be  made  by  so 
few  as  almost  to  be  objectionable  on  that  account."  '  Mr. 
Madison's  motion  being  lost,  and  the  report  of  the  commit- 
tee of  eleven  agreed  to,  Edmund  Randolph  moved  that  the 
legislature  take  a  periodical  census  to  redress  inequalities  in 
the  representation.  Colonel  Mason  here  gave  expression  to 
his  fears,  that  the  South  would  not  be  sufficiently  secured 
in  her  rights  by  the  new  Constitution  :  •    • 

*'  The  greater  the  difficulty  we  find  in  fixing  a  proper  rule  of 
representation,  the  more  unwilling  ought  we  to  be  to  throw  the 
task  from  ourselves  on  the  General  Legislature.  He  did  not 
object  to  the  conjectural  ratio  which  was  to  prevail  in  the  outset ; 
but  considered  a  revision  from  time  to  time,  according  to  some 
permanent  and  precise  standard,  as  essential  to  the  fair  repre- 
sentation required  in  the  first  branch.  /According  to  the  present*, 
population  of  America,  the  Northern  part  of  it  had  a  right  to' 
preponderate  ;  and  he  could  not  deny  it.  But  he  wished  it  not 
to  preponderate  hereafter,  when  the  reason  no  longer  continued. 
From  the  nature  of  man,  we  may  be  sure  that  those  who  have 
power  in  their  hands  will  not  give  it  up,  while  they  can  retain  it 
On  the  contrary,  we  know  that  they  will  always,  when  they  can, 
rather  increase  jtj  If  the  Southern  States,  therefore,  should  have 
three-fourths  of  the  people  of  America  within  their  limits,  the 
Northern  will  hold  fast  the  majority  of  i^epresentatives.  One- 
fourth  will  govern  the  three-fourths.  The  Southern  States  will 
complain,  but  they  may  complain  from  generation  to  generation 
without  redress.  Unless  some  principle,  therefore,  which  will  do 
justice  to  them  hereafter  shall  be  inserted  in  the  Constitution, 
disagreeable  as  the  declaration  was  to  him,  he  must  declare  he 
could  neither  vote  for  the  system  here,  nor  support  it  in  his 
State.  Strong  objections  had  been  drawn  from  the  danger  to 
the  Atlantic  interests  from  new  Western  States.  Ought  we  to 
sacrifice  what  we  know  to  be  right  in  itself,  lest  it  should  prove 
favorable  to  States  which  are  not  yet  in  existence  ?  If  the 
Western  States  are  to  be  admitted  into  the  Union,  as  they  arise, 
they  must,  he  would  repeat,  be  treated  as  equals,  and  subjected 
to  no  degrading  discriminations.    They  will  have  the  same  pride, 

'  Ibid.y  p.  1061. 


136      LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE   OF  GEORGE  MASON, 

II ^  I 

and  other  passions,  which  we  have  ;  and  will  either  not  unite 
with,  or  will  speedily  revolt  from,  the  Union,  if  they  are  not  in 
all  respects  placed  on  an  equal  footing  with  their  brethren.  It 
has  been  said,  they  will  be  poor,  and  unable  to  make  equal  con- 
tributions to  the  general  treasury.  He  did  not  know  but  that,  in 
time,  they  would  be  both  more  numerous  and  more  wealthy  than 
their  Atlantic  brethren.  The  extent  and  fertility  of  their  soil 
made  this  probable  ;  and  though  Spain  might  for  a  time  deprive 
them  of  the  natural  outlet  for  their  productions,  yet  she  will,  be- 
cause she  must,  finally  yield  to  their  demands.  He  urged  that 
numbers  of  inhabitants,  though  not  always  a  precise  standard  of 
wealth,  was  sufficiently  so  for  every  substantial  purpose.**  * 

The  representation  to  be  regulated  on  a  census  of  the  free 
white  inhabitants  and  three  fifths  of  the  slaves  was  the  next 
proposition  discussed.  Some  of  the  Northern  members  of 
the  Convention  were  opposed  to  any  representation  of  the 
slaves,  while  the  extreme  Southern  delegates  insisted  that 
they  should  be  counted  equally  with  the  whites.  The  three- 
fifths  basis  was  another  one  of  the  compromises  of  the  Con- 
stitution. George  Mason  advocated  it,  and  on  a  motion  for 
an  equal  representation  of  the  blacks,  declared  he  "could 
not  agree  to  the  motion,  notwithstanding  it  was  favorable 
to  Virginia,  because  he  thought  it  unjust.  It  was  certain 
that  the  slaves  were  valuable,  as  they  raised  the  value  of 
land,  increased  the  exports  and  imports,  and  of  course  the 
revenue,  would  supply  the  means  of  feeding  and  supporting 
an  army,  and  might  in  cases  of  emergency  become  them- 
selves soldiers.  As  in  these  important  respects  they  were 
useful  to  the  community  at  large,  they  ought  not  to  be 
excluded  from  the  estimate  of  representation.  He  could 
not,  however,  regard  them  as  equal  to  freemen,  and  could 
not  vote  for  them  as  such.  He  added,  as  worthy  of  remark, 
that  the  Southern  States  have  this  peculiar  species  of  prop- 
erty, over  and  above  the  other  species  of  property  common 
to  all  the  States." "  Mr.  Sherman  said  that  he  had  become 
convinced  by  the  observations  of  Mr.  Randolph  and  Colonel 

'  Ibid.^  p.  1064.  *  Ibid.,  p.  io68. 


MOTION  MADE  BY  GOUVERNEUR  MORRIS.  137 

# __^ 

Mason  that  the  periods  and  the  rule  of  revising  the  rep- 
resentation ought  to  be  fixed  by  the  Constitution.  George 
Mason  "objected  to  a  motion  [made  by  Rutiedge]  to 
include  wealth  with  population  in  the  estimate,  as  requiring 
of  the  legislature  soniething  too  indefinite  and  impracticable, 
and  leaving  them  a  pretext  for  doing  nothing.**  *  In  reply 
to  Gouverneur  Morris,  who  reiterated  his  objections  to 
admitting  the  Western  country  on  an  equal  footing  with  the 
Atlantic  States,  Colonel  Mason,  while  agreeing  with  him, 
"  that  we  ought  to  leave  the  interests  of  the  people  to  the 
representatives  of  the  people,"  said,  that  "the  objection 
was,  that  the  legislature  would  cease  to  be  the  representa- 
tives of  the  people.  It  would  continue  so  no  longer  than 
the  States  now  containing  a  majority  of  the  people  should 
retain  that  majority.  As  soon  as  the  southern  and  western 
population  should  predominate,  which  must  happen  in  a 
few  years,  the  power  would  be  in  the  hands  of  the  minority, 
and  would  never  be  yielded  to  the  majority,  unless  provided 
for  by  the  Constitution.** ' 

Gouverneur  Morris  startled  the  Convention  on  the  12th 
by  a  proposal  that  "taxation  should  be  in  proportion  to 
representation.**  This  was  a  blow  aimed  at  the  Southern 
proposition  for  a  full  representation  of  the  slaves.  George 
Mason  in  reply  "  admitted  the  justice  of  the  principle  but 
was  afraid  embarrassments  might  be  occasioned  to  the  legis- 
lature by  it.  It  might  drive  the  legislature  to  the  plan 
of  requisitions.**  *  Morris  then  limited  his  motion  to  direct 
taxation,  and  this  was  agreed  to.  After  a  little  further^ 
skirmishing,  it  was  finally  decided  that  representation 
should  be  proportioned  to  direct  taxation,  and  both  to  the 
number  of  the  free  white  and  three  fifths  of  the  slave  popu- 
lation. On  a  motion  to  assess  the  inhabitants  of  the  States, 
until  a  census  could  be  taken  according  to  the  number 
of  their  representatives  in  the  first  branch.  Colonel  Mason 
said  he  "  did  not  know  that  Virginia  would  be  a  loser  by  the 
proposed  regulation,  but  had  some  scruple  as  to  the  justice 

*  IHd.,  p.  1071.        *  Ibid,,  p.  1075.        *  IHd,,  p.  1089. 


138      UFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE   OF  GEORGE   MASON. 

of  it.  He  doubted  much  whether  the  conjectural  rule 
which  was  to  precede  the  census  would  be  as  just  as  it 
would  be  rendered  by  an  actual  census."  '  The  equal  vote 
in  the  Senate  was  the  next  disputed  point  taken  up.  The 
small  States  refused  to  confederate  on  any  other  terms,  and 
the  lai^e  States  as  a  class  still  opposed  it.  On  the  16th 
an  adjournment  was  voted  to  enable  the  dissatisfied  ones  to 
talk  over  the  subject,  and  the  result  was  satisfactory,  for  the 
compromise  was  finally  effected  at  this  time. 

>  IHd.,  p.  10B9. 


CHAPTER  V. 

THE   CHAMPION   UK   STATES-RIGHTS. 

July-September,  1787. 

The  mode  of  electing  the  Executive  was  under  discussion 
on  the  i7th  of  July.  George  Mason  approved  of  an  election 
by  the  legislature  rather  than  by  the  people  at  large.  In 
animadverting  upon  some  of  the  opinions  that  had  been  ex- 
pressed, Colonel  Mason  said : 

"  It  is  curious  to  remark  the  different  language  held  at  different 
times.  At  one  moment  we  are  told  that  the  legislature  is  entitled 
to  thorough  confidence,  and  to  indefinite  power.  At  another,  that 
it  will  be  governed  by  intrigue  and  corruption,  and  cannot  be 
trusted  at  all.  But  not  to  dwell  on  this  inconsistency,  he  would 
observe  that  a  government  which  is  to  last  ought  at  least  to  be 
practicable.  Would  this  be  the  case  if  the  proposed  election 
should  be  left  to  the  people  at  large  ?  He  conceived  it  would  be 
as  unnatural  to  refer  the  choice  of  a  proper  character  for  Chief 
Magistrate  to  the  people,  as  it  would,  to  refer  a  trial  of  colors  to 
a  blind  man.  The  extent  of  the  country  renders  it  impossible, 
that  the  people  can  have  the  requisite  capacity  to  judge  of  the 
respective  pretensions  of  the  candidates.'" 

On  a  motion  to  strike  out  seven  years  as  the  term  of  office 
for  the  Executive,  and  substitute  "during  good  behaviour," 
Colonel  Mason  spoke  decisively  against  it : 

"  This  motion  was  made  some  time  ago,  and  negatived  by  a 

very  large  majority.    He  trusted  that  it  would  be  again  negatived. 

'  "  Modisoii  P>pen,"  vol.  ii.,  |i.  II33. 


I40     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

It  would  be  impossible  to  define  the  misbehaviour  in  such  a  man- 
ner as  to  subject  it  to  a  proper  trial ;  and  perhaps  still  more  im- 
possible to  compel  so  high  an  offender,  holding  his  office  by  such 
a  tenure,  to  submit  to  a  trial.  He  considered  an  executive  during 
good  behaviour  as  a  softer  name  only  for  an  executive  for  life. 
And  that  the  next  would  be  an  easy  step  to  hereditary  monarchy. 
If  the  motion  should  finally  succeed,  he  might  himself  live  to  see 
such  a  revolution.  If  he  did  not,  it  was  probable  his  children  or 
grandchildren  would.  He  trusted  there  were  few  men  in  that 
House  who  wished  for  it.  No  State,  he  was  sure,  had  so  far  re- 
volted from  republican  principles,  as  to  have  the  least  bias  in  its 
favor." » 

On  the  1 8th  the  subject  of  the  judiciary  was  discussed,  and 
it  was  proposed  that  the  judges  should  be  appointed  "  by  the 
Executive  with  the  consent  of  the  Senate,"  instead  of  by  the 
Senate  as  declared  in  the  eleventh  resolution  of  the  report. 
George  Mason  spoke  as  follows : 

''  The  mode  of  appointing  the  judges  may  depend  in  some  de- 
gree on  the  mode  of  trying  impeachments  of  the  executive.  If 
the  judges  were  to  form  a  tribunal  for  that  purpose  they  surely 
ought  not  to  be  appointed  by  the  executive.  There  were  in- 
superable objections  besides  against  referring  the  appointmenjt  to 
the  executive.  He  mentioned  as  one,  that  as  the  seat  of  govern- 
ment must  be  in  some  one  State  ;  and  as  the  executive  would  re- 
main in  office  for  a  considerable  time,  for  four,  five  or  six  years 
at  least,  he  would  insensibly  form  local  and  personal  attachments 
within  the  particular  State  that  would  deprive  equal  merit  else- 
where of  an  equal  chance  of  promotion.' 


f»  1 


Concerning  the  twelfth  resolution,  "  that  the  national  legis-\ 
lature  be  empowered  to  appoint  inferior  tribunals,"  Colonel  \ 
Mason  "  thought  many  circumstances  might  arise,  not  now 
to  be  foreseen,  which  might  render  such  a  power  absolutely 
necessary."  "  Objections  being  made  to  the  sixteenth  reso- 
lution guaranteeing  a  republican  constitution  to  each  State 
by  the  United  States,  George  Mason  said,  "  if  the  general 

*  IHd,^  p.  1127.  •  Ibui.,  p.  1131.  •  find,,  p.  1137. 


POWERS  OF   THE  JUDICIARY.  14I 

government  should  have  no  right  to  suppress  rebellions 
against  particular  States,  it  will  be  in  a  bad  situation  indeed. 
As  rebellions  against  itself  originate  in  and  against  individual 
States,  it  must  remain  a  passive  spectator  of  its  own  subver- 
sion." • 

The  appointment  of  the  Executive  through  electors  having 
been  decided  upon,  the  question  of  impeachment  was  re- 
sumed.    Colonel  Mason  declared : 

''  No  point  is  of  more  importance  than  that  the  right  of  im- 
peachment should  be  continued.  Shall  any  man  be  above  jus- 
tice ?  Above  all,  shall  that  man  be  above  it  who  can  commit  the 
most  extensive  injustice  ?  When  great  crimes  were  committed, 
he  was  for  punishing  the  principal  as  well  as  the  coadjutors. 
There  had  been  much  debate  and  difficulty  as  to  the  mode  of 
choosing  the  executive.  He  approved  of  that  which  had  been 
adopted  at  first,  namely,  of  referring  the  appointment  to  the  na- 
tional legislature.  One  objection  against  electors  was  the  danger 
of  their  being  corrupted  by  the  candidates,  and  this  furnished  a 
peculiar  reason  in  favor  of  impeachment  whilst  in  office.  Shall  the 
man  who  has  practised  corruption,  and  by  that  means  procured 
his  appointment  in  the  first  instance,  be  suffered  to  escape  punish- 
ment by  repeating  his  guilt  ? 


>>  t 


On  the  motion  to  associate  the  judiciary  "with  the  execu- 
tive in  the  revisionary  power,"  Colonel  Mason  said,  "  he  had 
always  been  a  friend  to  this  provision.  It  would  give  a  con- 
fidence to  the  executive,  which  he  would  not  otherwise  have, 
and  without  which  the  revisionary  power  would  be  of  little 
avail."  He  urged  again,  **  thatlthc  defence  of  the  executive 
was  not  the  sole  object  of  the  revisionary  power.  He  ex- 
pected even  greater  advantages  from  it.  Notwithstanding 
the  precautious  taken  in  the  constitution  of  the  legislature, 
it  would  still  so  much  resemble  that  of  the  individual  States, 
that  it  must  be  expected  frequently  to  pass  unjust  and  per- 
nicious laws.  This  restraining  power  was  therefore  essen- 
tially necessary.      It   would    have   the   effect,  not  only  of 

^  IHd,,  p.  1 139.  •  Ibid.,  p.  II 54. 


\ 


142      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE   OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

hindering  the  final  passage  of  such  laws,  but  would  discour- 
age  demagogues  from  attempting  to  get  them  passed.  It 
has  been  said  (by  Mr.  Luther  Martin),  that  if  the  judges 
were  joined  in  this  check  on  the  laws,  they  would  have  a 
double  negative,  since  in  their  expository  capacity  of  judges 
they  would  have  one  negative.  He  would  reply,  that  in  this 
capacity  they  could  impede,  in  one  case  only,  the  operation 
of  laws.  They  could  declare  an  unconstitutional  law  void. 
But  with  regard  to  every  law,  however  unjust,  oppressive  or 
pernicious,  that  did  not  come  plainly  under  this  description^ 
they  would  be  under  the  necessity,  as  judges,  to  give  it  a 
free  course.  He  wished  the  further  use  to  be  made  of  the 
judges  of  giving  aid  in  preventing  every  improper  law.  Their 
aid  will  be  the  more  valuable,  as  they  ar^  in  the  habit  and 
practice  of  considering  laws  in  their  true  principles,  and  in 
all  their  consequences." ' 

In  regard  to  the  appointment  of  judges,  Mr.  Madison 
made  the  motion  that  they  should  be  nominated  by  the? 
Executive,  and  the  appointments  so  made,  unless  disagreed! 
to  by  two  thirds  of  the  Senate,  were  to  hold  good.  Governor 
Randolph  favored  the  motion.  Colonel  Mason  did  not 
assent  to  it ;  he  "  found  it  his  duty  to  differ  from  his  col- 
leagues in  their  opinions  and  reasonings  on  this  subject. 
Notwithstanding  the  form  of  the  proposition,  by  which  the 
appointment  seemed  to  be  divided  between  the  executive 
and  Senate,  the  appointment  was  substantially  vested  in  the 
former  alone.  The  false  complaisance  which  usually  pre- 
vails in  such  cases  will  prevent  a  disagreement  to  the  first 
nominations.  He  considered  the  appointment  by  the  ex- 
ecutive as  a  dangerous  prerogative.  It  might  even  give  him 
an  influence  over  the  judiciary  department  itself.  He  did 
not  think  the  difference  of  interest  between  the  Northern 
and  Southern  States  could  be  properly  brought  into  this 
argument.  It  would  operate,  and  require  some  precautions 
in  the  case  of  regulating  navigation,  commerce,  and  imposts ; 
but  he  could  not  see  that  it  had  any  connection  with  the 

^  Ibid,,  pp.  II63-1168. 


APPOINTMENT  OF  JUDGES.  I43 

judiciary  department."  *  Madison  had  contended  that  ap- 
pointments by  the  Senate  would  give  the  balance  of  power 
to  the  Northern  States.  The  committee  had  given  the 
appointment  of  judges  to  the  second  branch  of  the  legisla- 
ture, but  a  motion  had  been  made  on  the  i8th  to  alter 
this  decision,  which  was  revived  by  Madison. 

On  the  23d  the  Convention  debated  on  the  mode  of  ratify- 
ing the  Constitution.  Should  it  be  by  the  States  through  their 
legislatures,  or  by  conventions  of  the  people  in  each  State  ? 
George  Mason  warmly  espoused  the  latter  alternative.  He 
"  considered  a  reference  of  the  plan  to  the  authority  of  the 
people  as  one  of  the  most  important  and  essential  of  the 
resolutions.  The  legislatures  have  no  power  to  ratify  it. 
They  are  the  mere  creatures  of  the  State  constitutions,  and 
cannot  be  greater  than  their  creators.  And  he  knew  of  no 
power  in  any  of  the  constitutions — he  knew  there  was  no 
power  in  some  of  them — that  could  be  competent  to  this 
object.  Whither,  then,  must  we  resort?  To  the  people, 
with  whom  all  power  remains  that  has  not  been  given  up  in 
the  constitutions  derived  from  them.  It  was  of  great  mo- 
ment, he  observed,  that  this  doctrine  should  be  cherished,  as 
the  basis  of  free  government.  \  Another  strong  reason  was 
that,  admitting  the  legislatures  to  have  a  competent  authority, 
it  would  be  wrong  to  refer  the  plan  to  them,  because  suc- 
ceeding legislatures,  having  equal  authority,  could  undo  the 
acts  of  their  predecessors;  and  the  national  government 
would  stand  in  each  State  on  the  weak  and  tottering  foun- 
dation of  an  act  of  Assembly.  There  was  a  remaining  con- 
sideration of  some  weight.  In  some  of  the  States,  the  gov- 
ernments were  not  derived  from  the  clear  and  undisputed 
authority  of  the  people.  This  was  the  case  in  Virginia. 
Some  of  the  best  and  wisest  citizens  considered  the  Consti- 
tution as  established  by  an  assumed  authority.  A  national 
constitution  derived  from  such  a  source  would  be  exposed 
to  the  severest  criticism.** ' 

A  motion  was  made  that   the  members  of  the  Senate 

•  Ibid,^  p.  1174.  ^  Ikid»,  p.  1177. 


144     ^^^^  ^^^  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

should  vote  per  capita^  and  that  the  number  from  each  State 
should  be  three.  Colonel  Mason  thought  "  three  from  each 
State,  including  new  States,  would  make  the  second  branch 
too  numerous.  Besides  other  objections,  the  additional 
expense  ought  always  to  form  one,  where  it  was  not  abso- 
lutely necessary."  *  The  puzzling  question  of  the  mode  of 
electing  the  Executive  was  discussed  on  the  24th  and  25th. 
Among  other  plans,  the  motion  was  made  that  he  should  be 
appointed  by  the  legislature,  and  be  not  eligible  "  for  more 
than  six  years  in  any  twelve  years."  Colonel  Mason  ap- 
proved the  suggestion : 

''  It  had  the  sanction  of  experience  in  the  instance  of  Congress, 
and  some  of  the  executives  of  the  States.  It  rendered  the  exec- 
utive as  effectually  independent  as  an  ineligibility  after  his  first 
election  ;  and  opened  the  way,  at  the  same  time,  for  the  advan- 
tage of  his  future  services.  He  preferred  on  the  whole  the 
election  by  the  national  legislature  ;  though  candor  obliged  him 
to  admit,  that  there  was  great  danger  of  foreign  influence,  as  had 
been  suggested.  This  was  the  most  serious  objection,  with  him, 
that  had  been  urged.' 


i>  1 


On  the  24th  of  July,  the  twenty-three  resolutions  which 
the  Convention  had  elaborated  from  the  nineteen  resolutions 
reported  on  the  19th  of  June  were  referred  to  a  Committee 
of  Detail  to  be  shaped  into  a  constitution.  This  committee 
consisted  of  five  members,  Gorham,  Ellsworth,  Wilson,  Ran- 
dolph, and  Rutledge,  three  Northern  and  two  Southern 
men.  The  resolution  on  the  Executive  was  not  given  to  the 
committee  until  the  26th.  On  this  day  George  Mason 
made  the  opening  speech  in  the  Convention,  passing  in 
review  the  various  propositions  that  had  been  made  in 
regard  to  the  subject  under  discussion : 

"  In  every  stage  of  the  question  relative  to  the  executive,  the 
difficulty  of  the  subject  and  the  diversity  of  the  opinions  concern- 
ing it,  have  appeared.  Nor  have  any  of  the  modes  of  constitut- 
ing that  department  been  satisfactory.  First,  it  has  been  proposed 
that  the  election  should  be  made  by  the  people  at  large  ;  that  is, 
'  /3iV/..  p.  1185.  « IHd.,  p.  1202. 


SPEECH  ON  MODE  OF  ELECTING  THE  EXECUTIVE.   I45 

that  an  act  which  ought  to  be  performed  by  those  who  know 
most  of  eminent  characters  and  qualifications,  should  be  per- 
formed by  those  who  know  least ;  secondly,  that  the  election 
should  be  made  by  the  legislatures  of  the  States  ;  thirdly,  by  the 
executives  of  the  States.  Against  these  modes,  also,  strong  ob- 
jections have  been  urged.  Fourthly,  it  has  been  proposed  that 
the  election  should  be  made  by  electors  chosen  by  the  people  for 
that  purpose.  This  was  at  first  agreed  to  ;  but  on  further  consid- 
eration has  been  rejected.  Fifthly,  since  which,  the  mode  of 
Mr.  Williamson,  requiring  each  freeholder  to  vote  for  several 
candidates,  has  been  proposed.  This  seemed,  like  many  other 
propositions,  to  carry  a  plausible  face,  but  on  closer  inspection  is 
liable  to  fatal  objections.  A  popular  election  in  any  form,  as 
Mr.  Gerry  has  observed,  would  throw  the  appointment  into  the 
hands  of  the  Cincinnati,  a  society  for  the  members  of  which 
he  had  a  great  respect,  but  which  he  never  wished  to  have  a 
preponderating  influence  in  the  government.  Sixthly,  another 
expedient  was  proposed  by  Mr.  Dickinson,  which  is  liable  to 
so  palpable  and  material  an  inconvenience,  that  he  had  little 
doubt  of  its  being  by  this  time  rejected  by  himself.  It  would  ex- 
clude every  man  who  happened  not  to  be  popular  within  his  own 
State  ;  though  the  causes  of  his  local  unpopularity  might  be  of 
3uch  a  nature,  as  to  recommend  him  to  the  States  at  large. 
Seventhly,  among  other  expedients,  a  lottery  has  been  intro- 
duced. But  as  the  tickets  do  not  appear  to  be  in  much  demand, 
it  will  probably  not  be  carried  on,  and  nothing  therefore  need  be 
said  on  that  subject.  After  reviewing  all  these  various  modes, 
he  was  led  to  conclude,  that  an  election  by  the  national  legisla- 
ture, as  originally  proposed,  was  the  best.  If  it  was  liable  to 
objections,  it  was  liable  to  fewer  than  any  other.  He  conceived, 
at  the  same  time,  that  a  second  election  ought  to  be  absolutely 
prohibited.  Having  for  his  primary  object — for  the  polar  star  of 
his  political  conduct — the  preservation  of  the  rights  of  the  peo- 
ple, he  held  it  as  an  essential  point,  as  the  very  palladium  of  civil 
liberty,  that  the  great  officers  of  state,  and  particularly  the  execu- 
tive, should  at  fixed  periods  return  to  that  mass  from  which  they 
were  at  first  taken,  in  order  that  they  may  feel  and  respect  those 
rights  and  interests  which  are  again  to  be  personally  valuable  to 
them." 

Vol.  II. — 10  *  lOid.,  p.  1207. 


146     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

He  concluded  with  moving,  that  the  constitution  of  the 
Executive,  as  reported  by  the  Committee  of  the  Whole, 
be  reinstated,  viz. :  "  that  the  executive  be  appointed  for 
seven  years  [by  the  legislature]  and  be  ineligible  a  second 
time."  Mr.  Dickinson's  proposition  had  been  that  each 
State  should  select  its  best  citizen,  and  out  of  the  thirteen 
names  the  Executive  should  be  chosen,  either  by  the  na- 
tional legislature  or  by  electors  appointed  by  it.  It  was 
from  Mr.  Wilson  of  Pennsylvania,  that  the  singular  scheme 
emanated,  which  called  forth  George  Mason's  shrewd  sar- 
casm. This  was,  to  elect  the  Executive  for  six  years,  by  not 
more  than  fifteen  of  the  members  of  the  legislature,  these 
members  to  be  drawn  from  it  not  by  ballot  but  by  lot,  and 
they  were  to  retire  immediately  and  make  the  election  with- 
out separating.  Colonel  Mason's  resolution  passing  in  the 
affirmative,  he  then  moved  **  that  the  Committee  of  Detail 
be  instructed  to  receive  a  clause  requiring  certain  qualifica- 
tions of  landed  property  and  citizenship  of  the  United 
States,  in  members  of  the  national  legislature;  and  dis- 
qualifying persons  having  unsettled  accounts  with,  or  being 
indebted  to,  the  United  States,  from  being  members  of  the 
national  legislature."  He  observed  "  that  persons  of  the 
latter  descriptions  had  frequently  got  into  the  State  legis- 
latures, in  order  to  promote  laws  that  might  shelter  their 
delinquencies ;  and  that  this  evil  had  crept  into  Congress,  if 
report  was  to  be  regarded."  *  Gouverneur  Morris  opposed 
this  discrimination,  when  Colonel  Mason  mentioned  "the 
parliamentary  qualifications  adopted  in  the  reign  of  Queen 
Anne,  which  he  said  had  met  with  universal  approbation.'* 
Mr.  Morris  retorted  that  these  "  had  been  disregarded  in 
practice ;  and  were  but  a  scheme  of  the  landed  against  the 
monied  interest."  •  The  first  part  of  Colonel  Mason's  mo- 
tion passed  in  the  affirmative  ;  the  clause  disqualifying  pub- 
lic debtors  was  lost.  He  next  observed  "  that  it  would  be 
proper,  as  he  thought,  that  some  provision  should  be  made 
in  the  Constitution  against  choosing  for  the  seat  of  the  gen- 

'  Und,^  p.  1211.  •  Ibid,^  pp.  1212,  1213. 


PROVISION  FOR    THE   SEAT  OF  GOVERNMENT,      1 47 

eral  government,  the  city  or  place  at  which  the  seat  of  any 
State  government  might  be  fixed.  There  were  two  objec- 
tions against  having  them  at  the  same  place,  which,  without 
mentioning  others,  required  some  precaution  on  the  subject. 
The  first  was,  that  it  tended  to  produce  disputes  concerning 
jurisdiction.  The  second  and  principal  one  was,  that  the  in- 
termixture of  the  two  legislatures  tended  to  give  a  provincial 
tincture  to  the  national  deliberations."  He  moved  "that 
the  committee  be  instructed  to  receive  a  clause  to  prevent 
the  seat  of  the  national  government  being  in  the  same  city 
or  town  with  the  seat  of  the  government  of  any  State, 
longer  than  until  the  necessary  public  buildings  could  be 
erected."  There  was  some  opposition  to  this,  and  Colonel 
Mason  then  said  ''  he  did  not  mean  to  press  the  motion 
at  this  time,  nor  to  excite  any  hostile  passions  against  the 
system.  He  was  content  to  withdraw  the  motion  for  the 
present."  *  The  Convention  then  adjourned  from  the  26th 
of  July  to  the  6th  of  August,  in  order  to  give  the  Commit- 
tee of  Detail  time  to  prepare  a  constitution. 

The  report  of  the  committee  delivered  to  the  Convention 
on  the  6th  of  August  consisted  of  twenty-three  articles.'  It 
was  taken  up  the  following  day  for  consideration.  The  pre- 
amble, '*  We,  the  people  of  the  States  of "  etc.,  with  the  first 
and  second  articles,  was  agreed  to.  The  third  article  was 
debated,  and  George  Mason  "  doubted  the  propriety  of  giv- 
ing each  branch  a  negative  on  the  other  *  in  all  cases.*  There 
were  some  cases  in  which  it  was,  he  supposed,  not  intended 
to  be  given,  as  in  the  case  of  balloting  for  appointments." 
Mr.  Morris  moved  to  insert "  legislative  acts,"  instead  of  "  in 
all  cases."  Colonel  Mason  "  thought  the  amendment  of  Mr. 
Gouverneur  Morris  extended  too  far.  Treaties  are  in  a  sub- 
sequent part  declared  to  be  laws;  they  will  therefore  be 
subjected  to  a  negative,  although  they  are  to  be  made,  as 
proposed,  by  the  Senate  alone.  He  proposed  that  the  mu- 
tual negative  should  be  restrained  to  *  cases  requiring  the 
distinct  assent '  of  the  two  Houses."     Mr.  Morris  considered 

'  /W</..  pp.  1218-1220.  •  Ihid,^  pp.  121S-1220. 


148      LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

this  "  but  a  repetition  of  the  same  thing ;  the  mutual  nega- 
tive and  distinct  assent  being  equivalent  expressions.  Trea- 
ties, he  thought,  were  not  laws."  *  The  whole  clause  in  regard 
to  a  negative  was  struck  out  at  the  instance  of  Madison, 
and  Gouverneur  Morris*  motion  passed  in  the  negative. 
Discussion  then  followed  on  the  concluding  clause,  ap- 
pointing the  time  for  the  legislature  to  meet.  Colonel 
Mason  ''  thought  the  objection  against  fixing  the  time 
insuperable ;  but  that  an  annual  meeting  ought  to  be 
required  as  essential  to  the  preservation  of  the  Constitu- 
tion. The  extent  of  the  country  will  supply  business.  And 
if  it  should  not,  the  legislature,  besides  legislative^  is  to  have 
inquisitorial  powers,  which  cannot  safely  be  long  kept  in  a 
state  of  suspension."  *  The  clause  received,  at  this  time,  cer- 
tain alterations  which  proved  to  be  final.  The  qualifications  of 
electors  coming  up  for  consideration,  Mr.  Morris  wished  to 
restrain  the  right  of  suffrage  to  freeholders.  The- Constitu-  \ 
tion  left  it  to  the  States  to  decide,  each  one  in  its  own  way. 
George  Mason  said  : 

"  The  force  of  habit  is  certainly  not  attended  to  by  those  gentle- 
men who  wish  for  innovations  on  this  point.  Eight  or  nine  States 
have  extended  the  right  of  suffrage  beyond  the  freeholders.  What 
will  the  people  there  say,  if  they  should  be  disfranchised  ?  A 
power  to  alter  the  qualifications,  would  be  a  dangerous  power  in 
the  hands  of  the  legislature.  We  all  feel  too  strongly  the  remains 
of  ancient  prejudices,  and  view  things  too  much  through  a  Brit-i 
ish  medium.  A  freehold  is  the  qualification  in  England,  and] 
hence  it  is  imagined  to  be  the  only  proper  one.  The  true  idea,  ii 
his  opinion,  was  that  every  man  having  evidence  of  attachmen] 
to,  and  permanent  common  interest  with,  the  society,  ought  i\ 
share  in  all  its  rights  and  privileges.  Was  this  qualification  r< 
strained  to  freeholders?  Does  no  other  kind  of  property  but 
land  evidence  a  common  interest  in  the  proprietor?  Does 
nothing  besides  property  mark  a  permanent  attachment  ?  Ought 
the  merchant,  the  monied  man,  the  parent  of  a  number  of  chil- 
dren whose  fortunes  are  to  be  pursued  in  his  own  country,  to  be 

*  **  Madison  Papers,"  vol.  iil.,  pp.  1243-1244.  '  /(W</.,  p.  1246. 


AN  IMPORTANT  QUESTION  DISCUSSED.  149 

viewed  as  suspicious  characters,  and  unworthy  to  be  trusted  with 
the  coraraon  rights  of  their  fellow  citizens  ?  ** ' 

The  second  section  of  the  fourth  article  required  of  a  rep- 
resentative that  he  should  have  been  a  citizen  of  the  United 
States  at  least  three  years  before  his  election.  Colonel 
Mason  was  '*  for  opening  a  wide  door  for  emigrants ;  but 
did  not  choose  that  foreigners  and  adventurers  make  laws 
for  us  and  govern  us.  Citizenship  for  three  years  was  not 
enough  for  ensuring  that  local  knowledge  which  ought  to  be 
possessed  by  the  representative.  This  was  the  principal 
objection  to  so  short  a  term.  It  might  also  happen,  that  a 
rich  foreign  nation,  for  example  Great  Britain,  might  send 
over  her  tools,  who  might  bribe  their  way  into  the  legisla- 
ture for  insidious  purposes."  He  moved  that  "  seven  **  years, 
instead  of  "three"  be  inserted.*  The  motion  was  agreed 
to.  It  was  then  proposed  to  alter  the  next  clause,  and 
require  a  representative  to  be  a  resident  for  a  certain  term 
of  years,  of  the  State  which  should  elect  him.  George 
Mason  thought  seven  years,  which  was  suggested,  too 
long,  "  but  would  never  agree  to  part  with  the  principle. 
It  is  a  valuable  principle.  He  thought  it  a  defect  in  the 
plan,  that  the  representatives  would  be  too  few  to  bring 
with  them  all  the  local  knowledge  necessary.  If  residence 
be  not  required,  rich  men  of  neighboring  States  may  employ 
with  success  the  means  of  corruption  in  some  particular  dis- 
trict, and  thereby  get  into  the  public  councils  after  having 
failed  in  their  own  States.  This  is  the  practice  in  the 
boroughs  of  England."*  He  then  moved,  with  Mr.  Ells- 
worth, to  insert  "  one  year  "  for  previous  inhabitancy.  The 
fifth  section,  giving  the  power  of  originating  money-bills  to 
the  House  of  Representatives,  again  met  with  opposition. 
Colonel  Mason  said,  "  he  was  unwilling  to  travel  over  this 
ground  again.  To  strike  out  the  section,  was  to  unhinge 
the  compromise  of  which  it  made  a  part.  The  duration  of 
the  Senate  made  it  improper.     He  did  not  object  to  that 

'  Ihid.^  pp.  1250-1253.  •  Ibid,,  p.  1256.  *  Ibid.,  p.  1259. 


I50     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

duration.  On  the  contrary,  he  approved  of  it.  But  joined 
with  the  smallness  of  the  number,  it  was  an  argument  against 
adding  this  to  the  other  great  powers  vested  in  that  body. 
His  idea  of  an  aristocracy  was,  that  it  was  the  government 
of  the  few  over  the  many.  An  aristocratic  body,  like  the 
screw  in  mechanics,  working  its  way  by  slow  degrees,  and 
holding  fast  whatever  it  gains,  should  ever  be  suspected  of 
an  encroaching  tendency.  The  purse-strings  should  never  be 
put  into  its  hands."  *  The  section  was  struck  out,  however, 
on  the  motion  of  Madison.  The  next  day  Edmund  Ran- 
dolph and  others  moved  to  reconsider  it.  Dr.  Franklin  be- 
lieved the  two  clauses,  the  originating  of  money-bills  in  the 
House,  and  the  equality  of  votes  in  the  Senate,  were  essen- 
tially connected  by  the  compromise  which  had  been  made 
by  the  grand  committee  and  reported  the  5th  of  July. 
George  Mason  thought  "  this  was  not  the  time  for  discussing 
this  point.  When  the  originating  of  money-bills  shall  be 
reconsidered,  he  thought  it  could  be  demonstrated,  that  it 
was  of  essential  importance  to  restrain  the  right  to  the 
House  of  Representatives,  the  immediate  choice  of  the 
people."  *  On  considering  the  first  section  of  article  fifth, 
Edmund  Randolph  wished  to  postpone  the  last  sentence, 
"  each  member  shall  have  one  vote.**  It  was  observed  that 
this  could  not  be  necessary,  "  as  in  case  the  sanction  as  to 
originating  money-bills  should  not  be  re-instated,  and  a  re- 
vision of  the  Constitution  should  ensue,  it  would  still  be 
proper  that  the  members  should  vote  per  capita,  A  post- 
ponement of  the  preceding  sentence,  allowing  to  each  State 
two  members,  would  have  been  more  proper."  Colonel 
Mason  replied,  "  he  did  not  mean  to  propose  a  change  of  this 
mode  of  voting  per  capita  in  any  event.  But  as  there 
might  be  other  modes  proposed,  he  saw  no  impropriety  in 
postponing  the  sentence.  Each  State  may  have  two  mem- 
bers, and  yet  may  have  unequal  votes.  He  said  that  unless 
the  exclusive  right  of  originating  money-bills  should  be 
restored  to  the  House  of  Representatives,  he  should — not 

•  Ibid,^  p.  1266.  *  Ibid,,  p.  1 271. 


CONSTITUTION  APPROVED  OF  AS  THEN  MOULDED,    1 5 1 

from  obstinacy,  but  duty  and  conscience — oppose  through- 
out the  equality  of  representation  in  the  Senate." '  The 
third  section  was  taken  up  and  Gouverneur  Morris  proposed 
to  make  fourteen  year's  citizenship,  instead  of  four,  a  qualifi- 
cation for  senators.  Colonel  Mason  "  highly  approved  of  the 
policy  of  the  motion.  Were  it  not  that  many,  not  natives 
of  this  country,  had  acquired  great  credit  during  the  Revo- 
lution, he  should  be  for  restraining  the  eligibility  into  the 
Senate,  to  natives."  *  Nine  years  was  finally  made  the 
period  of  citizenship  required. 

In  considering  article  sixth,  section  third,  several  of  the 
members  contended  that  less  than  a  majority  in  each  House 
should  constitute  a  quorum.  George  Mason  **  opposed  the 
change.  This  is  a  valuable  and  necessary  part  of  the  plan 
he  urged.  In  this  extended  country,  embracing  so  great  a 
diversity  of  interests,  it  would  be  dangerous  to  the  distant 
parts  to  allow  a  small  number  of  members  of  the  two 
Houses  to  make  laws.  The  central  States  could  always 
take  care  to  be  on  the  spot ;  and  by  meeting  earlier  than  the 
distant  ones,  or  worrying  their  patience,  and  outstaying 
them,  could  carry  such  measures  as  they  pleased.  He  ad- 
mitted that  inconveniences  might  spring  from  the  secession 
of  a  small  number ;  but  he  had  also  known  good  produced 
by  an  apprehension  of  it.  He  had  known  a  paper  emission 
prevented  by  that  cause  in  Virginia.  He  thought  the  Con- 
stitution as  now  moulded,  was  founded  on  sound  principles, 
and  was  disposed  to  put  into  it  extensive  powers.  At  the 
same  time  he  wished  to  guard  against  abuses  as  much  as 
possible.  If  the  legislature  should  be  able  to  reduce  the 
number  at  all,  it  nfiight  reduce  it  as  low  as  it  pleased,  and  the 
United  States  might  be  governed  by  a  junto.  A  majority 
of  the  number  which  had  been  agreed  on  was  so  few  that  he 
feared  it  would  be  made  an  objection  against  the  plan." " 
The  right  of  expulsion,  article  sixth,  section  sixth,  Madison 
observed  **  was  too  important  to  be  exercised  by  a  bare  ma- 
jority of  a  quorum,"  and  he  moved  that  "  with  the  concur- 

*  Ibid,^  p.  1272.  ^ Ifnd.^  p.  1274.  •  Ibid,^  p.  1287. 


1 


152      UPE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OP  GEORGE  MASON 

rence  of  two-thirds  "  might  be  inserted  between  ''  may  **  and 
''expel/'  an  amendment  that  both  Randolph  and  Mason 
approved  of.  The  seventh  section,  that  the  yeas  and  na3rs 
shall  at  the  desire  of  one  fifth  of  the  members  be  entered  on 
the  journal,  it  was  proposed  to  alter.  Some  were  for  allow- 
ing any  member  to  call  for  the  yeas  and  nays,  and  others 
proposed  to  strike  them  out  altogether.  Colonel  Mason 
"  liked  the  section  as  it  stood.  It  was  a  middle  way  between 
two  extremes.*' '  Whether  the  clause  should  be  retained, 
that  the  Congress  publish  their  proceedings  from  time  to 
time,  was  debated,  and  George  Mason  was  in  favor  of  it. 
He  "thought  it  would  give  a  just  alarm  to  the  people, 
to  make  a  conclave  of  their  legislature."  The  words,  how- 
ever, were  inserted,  "  except  such  parts  thereof  as  may  in 
their  judgment  require  secrecy.""  Recurring  to  article 
fourth,  section  second.  Colonel  Mason's  alteration  requiring 
citizenship  of  the  United  States  for  seven  years  as  a  qualifi- 
cation for  representatives,  was  assailed,  and  four  years  sug- 
gested as  a  substitute.  Mr.  Sherman,  in  defending  the 
theory  of  the  longer  term,  said  that  the  United  States  had 
not  "pledged  their  faith"  to  foreigners,  as  was  asserted, 
giving  them  equal  privileges  with  native  citizens,  but  the 
individual  States  had  done  this,  and  the  former  could  there- 
fore make  discriminations.  Mr.  Madison  was  shocked  at 
this  doctrine.  Colonel  Mason,  however,  was  struck,  as  he 
said,  "  not,  like  Mr.  Madison,  with  the  peculiarity^  but  with 
the  propriety y  of  the  doctrine  of  Mr.  Sherman.  The  States 
have  formed  different  qualifications  themselves  for  enjoying 
different  rights  of  citizenship.  Greater  caution  would  be 
necessary  in  the  outset  of  the  government  than  afterwards. 
All  the  great  objects  would  then  be  provided  for.  Every- 
thing would  be  then  set  in  motion.  If  persons  among  us 
attached  to  Great  Britain  should  work  themselves  into  our 
councils,  a  turn  might  be  given  to  our  affairs,  and  particu- 
larly to  our  commercial  regulations,  which  might  have 
pernicious  consequences.     The  great  houses  of  British  mer- 

'  IHd,,  pp.  1 29 1,  1292.  *  /AlV/.,  p.  1294. 


SPEECH  ON  ORIGINATING  MONEY-BILLS.  1 53 

chants  would  spare  no  pains  to  insinuate  the  instruments  of 
their  views  into  the  government."  *  The  important  section 
fifth  of  article  fourth  was  reconsidered  again,  and  Edmund 
Randolph  moved  to  alter  the  clause  in  regard  to  originating 
money-bills  by  inserting  "  for  the  purpose  of  revenue,"  and 
allowing  amendments  by  the  Senate  with  certain  restrictions. 
Colonel  Mason  spoke  at  length  on  this  subject : 

"This  amendment  removes  all  objections  urged  against  the 
section,  as  it  stood  at  first.  By  specifying  purposes  of  revenue^  it 
obviated  the  objection  that  the  section  extended  to  all  bills  under 
which  money  might  incidentally  arise.  By  authorizing  amend- 
ments in  the  Senate  it  got  rid  of  the  objections  that  the  Senate 
could  not  correct  errors  of  any  sort,  and  that  it  would  introduce 
into  the  House  of  Representatives  the  practice  of  tacking  foreign 
matter  to  money  bills.  These  objections  being  removed,  the 
arguments  in  favor  of  the  proposed  restraint  on  the  Senate  ought 
to  have  their  full  force.  First,  the  Senate  did  not  represent  the 
people^  but  the  States,  in  their  political  character.  It  was  im- 
proper therefore  that  it  should  tax  the  people.  The  reason  was 
the  same  against  their  doing  it,  as  it  had  been  against  Congress 
doing  it.  Secondly,  nor  was  it  in  any  respect  necessary,  in  order 
to  cure  the  evils  of  our  republican  system.  He  admitted  that, 
notwithstanding  the  superiority  of  the  republican  form  over  every 
other,  it  had  its  evils.  The  chief  ones  were,  the  danger  of  the 
majority  oppressing  the  minority,  and  the  mischievous  influence 
of  demagogues.  The  general  government  of  itself  will  cure 
them.  As  the  States  will  not  concur  at  the  same  time  in  their 
unjust  and  oppressive  plans,  the  general  government  will  be  able 
to  check  and  defeat  them,  whether  they  result  from  the  wicked- 
ness of  the  majority,  or  from  the  misguidance  of  demagogues. 
Again  the  Senate  is  not  like  the  House  of  Representatives,  chosen 
frequently,  and  obliged  to  return  frequently  among  the  people. 
They  are  to  be  chosen  by  the  States  for  six  years — will  probably 
settle  themselves  at  the  seat  of  government — will  pursue  schemes 
for  their  own  aggrandizement — will  be  able  by  wearying  out  the 
House  of  Representatives,  and  taking  advantage  of  their  im- 
patience at  the  close  of  a  long  session,  to  extort  measures  for  that 

'  Ibid,,  p.  1304. 


154      /-//^^  ^^^  COBBE^FOKDENCE  OF  GEOMGE  MASON. 


purpose.  If  thej  shonld  be  pmid,  Jis  he  expected  would  be  yd 
determined  and  wished  to  be  so,  out  of  the  national  treasmy, 
they  will,  pardcnlarl j,  extort  an  increase  of  their  wages.  A  bare 
negative  was  a  Tery  different  thing  from  that  of  originating  biDa. 
The  practice  in  England  was  in  point.  The  House  of  Lords 
does  not  represent  nor  tax  the  people,  becaose  not  elected  by  the 
people.  If  the  Senate  can  originate,  they  will,  in  the  recess  of 
the  legislative  sessions,  hatch  their  mischierons  projects,  fcM*  tbcir 
own  purposes,  and  have  their  money  bills  cut  and  dried  (to  use 
a  common  phrase)  for  the  meeting  of  the  House  of  Representa- 
tives. He  compared  the  case  to  Poyning's  law,'  and  signified 
that  the  House  of  Representatives  might  be  rendered  by  degrees 
like  the  parliament  of  Paris,  the  mere  depository  of  the  decrees 
of  the  Senate.  As  to  the  compromise,  so  much  had  passed  on 
that  subject  that  he  would  say  nothing  about  it.  He  did  noC 
mean  by  what  he  had  said,  to  oppose  the  permanency  of  the 
Senate.  On  the  contrary  he  had  no  repugnance  to  an  increase 
of  it,  nor  to  allowing  it  a  negative,  though  the  Senate  was  not,  by 
its  present  Constitution,  entitled  to  it.  But  in  all  events  he  would 
contend  that  the  purse  strings  should  be  in  the  hands  of  the 
representatives  of  the  people.**  * 

When  article  sixth,  section  ninth,  regarding  the  inel^i- 
bility  of  members  of  Congress  to  office,  was  debated,  and  a 
motion  was  made  to  alter  it,  George  Mason  pncq>osed  ironi- 
cally '*  to  strike  out  the  whole  section,  as  a  more  effectual 
expedient  for  encouraging  that  exotic  corruption  which 
might  not  otherwise  thrive  so  well  in  the  American  soQ; 
for  completing  that  aristocrac>*  which  was  probaUy  in  the 
contemfdation  of  some  among  us :  and  for  inviting  into  the 
legislative  service  those  generous  and  benevolent  characters, 
who  will  do  justice  to  each  other's  merit,  by  carvii^  out 
offices  and  rewards  for  it.  In  the  present  state  of  American 
morals  and  maimers,  few  friends,  it  may  be  thought,  will  be 


'  Fttsib^'s  Ad,   made  sadcr  the  Admi&sQmxScB  U  Sir  Edvanl 
Visegerec:  c^  beiukd  in  the  re^  of  Heaxr  \1I.     Uader  iliis  Uv 
czfLal  be  cocaei  ia  the  Izish  Pariiimest  cnjess ::  hsi  beem  m»inffcl 
hr  tike  kia£  :s  cocsciL 

•  •■  lUdiuo  Papers,"  toI.  iiL,  jk  ijob. 


•^ 


DANGERS  OF  THE   TREATY-MAKING  POWER,        15$ 

lost  to  the  plan,  by  the  opportunity  of  giving  premiums  to 
a  mercenary  and  depraved  ambition."  '  The  tenth  section 
provided  that  members  be  paid  by  their  respective  States. 
The  Convention  discussed  it  with  special  reference  to  the 
Senate,  when  Colonel  Mason  remarked  ''  that  the  clause  as 
it  now  stands  makes  the  House  of  Representatives  also  de- 
pendent on  the  State  legislatures ;  so  that  both  Houses  will  be 
made  the  instruments  of  the  politics  of  the  States,  whatever 
they  may  be."  *  It  was  finally  agreed  to  pay  the  members  of 
the  legislature  out  of  the  treasury  of  the  general  government. 
It  was  proposed  to  amend  section  twelfth  so  as  to  read  : 

"  Each  House  shall  possess  the  right  of  originating  all  bills, 
except  bills  for  raising  money  for  the  purposes  of  revenue,  or  for 
appropriating  the  same,  and  for  fixing  the  salaries  of  the  officers 
of  the  government,  which  shall  originate  in  the  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives ;  but  the  Seuate  may  propose  or  concur  with  amend- 
ments as  in  other  cases." 

George  Mason  seconded  the  motion.  "  He  was  extremely 
earnest  to  take  this  power  from  the  Senate,  who,  he  said, 
could  already  sell  the  whole  country  by  means  of  treaties."  * 
Mr.  Mercer  then  contended  "  that  the  Senate  ought  not  to 
have  the  power  of  treaties  ";  a  power  which  belonged  to  the 
executive  department,  adding  "  that  treaties  would  not  be 
final,  so  as  to  alter  the  laws  of  the  land,  till  ratified  by  legis- 
lative authority."  Colonel  Mason,  to  whose  observations 
Mr.  Mercer  had  alluded,  replied  that  he  ''  did  not  say  that  a 
treaty  would  repeal  a  law  ;  but  that  the  Senate  by  means  of 
treaties  might  alienate  territory,  &c.,  without  legislative 
sanction.  The  cessions  of  the  British  islands  in  the  West 
Indies,  by  treaty  alone,  were  an  example.  If  Spain  should 
possess  herself  of  Georgia,  therefore,  the  Senate  might  by 
treaty  dismember  the  Union.  He  wished  the  motion  to  be 
decided  now,  that  the  friends  of  it  might  know  how  to 
conduct  themselves."  * 

'  Ibid,,  p.  1318.  '  Ibid,,  p.  1331. 

■  Ibid,,  p.  1327.  *  Ibid,,  p.  1332. 


156     LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

The  Convention  proceeding  to  article  seventh,  the  first 
section,  first  clause,  giving  the  legislature  power  "  to  lay  and 
collect  taxes,  duties,  imposts  and  excises,"  was  considered, 
and  Colonel  Mason  "  urged  the  necessity  of  connecting  with 
the  powers  of  levying  taxes,  duties,  &c.,  the  prohibition  in 
article  seventh,  section  four,  '  that  no  tax  should  be  laid  on 
exports.'  He  was  unwilling  to  trust  to  its  being  done  in  a 
future  article.  He  hoped  the  Northern  States  did  not  mean 
to  deny  the  Southern  this  security.  It  would  hereafter  be 
as  desirable  to  the  former,  when  the  latter  should  become 
the  most  populous."  He  professed  his  jealousy  for  the  pro- 
'  ductions  of  the  Southern,  or  Staple  States,  as  he  called 
them.  He  moved  the  following  amendment :  "  Provided, 
that  no  tax,  duty,  or  imposition  shall  be  laid  by  the  legisla> 
ture  of  the  United  States  on  articles  exported  from  any 
State."  But  the  question  was  left  to  be  decided  later.  The 
clause  giving  Congress  the  power  to  "  emit  bills  on  the  credit 
of  the  United  States,"  it  was  proposed  to  strike  out.  Colo- 
nel Mason  "  had  doubts  on  the  subject.  Congress,  he 
thought,  would  not  have  the  power,  unless  it  were  ex- 
pressed. Though  he  had  a  mortal  hatred  to  paper  money, 
yet  as  he  could  not  foresee  all  emergencies,  he  was  unwilling 
to  tie  the  hands  of  the  legislature.  He  observed  that  the 
late  war  could  not  have  been  carried  on,  had  such  a  prohibi- 
tion existed."  He  was  still  "  averse  to  tying  the  hands  of 
the  legislature  altogether^*  he  added  later.  "  If  there  was 
no  example  in  Europe,  as  just  remarked  [by  Pierce  Butler], 
it  might  be  observed,  on  the  other  side,  that  there  was  none 
in  which  the  government  was  restrained  on  this  head."  But 
the  motion  for  striking  out  was  agreed  to.*  In  regard  to  the 
clause  to  appoint  a  treasurer  by  ballot,  Mr.  Read  moved  that 
this  appointment  should  be  left  to  the  Executive.  George 
Mason,  in  opposition  to  Mr.  Read's  motion,  "  desired  it 
might  be  considered,  to  whom  the  money  would  belong; 
if  to  the  people,  the  legislature,  representing  the  people, 
ought  to  appoint  the  keepers  of  it.'"     In  the  clause  "  to  de- 

»  Ibid.,  pp.  1 339-1 344.  •  IHd,,  p.  1347. 


REGULATIONS  CONCERNING   THE  MIUTIA.  1 57 

clare  the  law  and  punishment  of  piracies  and  felonies/*  etc., 
Madison  moved  to  strike  out  ''  and  punishment."  Colonel 
Mason  doubted  ''  the  safety  of  it,  considering  the  strict  rule 
of  construction  in  criminal  cases.  He  doubted  also  the  pro- 
priety of  taking  the  power  in  all  these  cases  wholly  from  the 
States."  *  It  was  moved  to  insert  "  declare  "  war  instead  of 
''  make  "  war,  and  Colonel  Mason  was  against  giving  the 
power  of  war  to  the  Executive,  as  was  suggested,  "  because 
not  safely  to  be  trusted  with  it ;  or  to  the  Senate,  because 
not  so  constructed  as  to  be  entitled  to  it.  He  was  for  clog- 
ging, rather  than  facilitating  war ;  but  for  facilitating  peace.'* 
He  preferred  "  declare  "  to  "  make,**  and  the  motion  was 
agreed  to. 

On  the  1 8th  of  August  Madison  submitted  certain  powers 
to  be  added  to  those  of  the  general  legislature,  and  George 
Mason  introduced  the  subject  of  regulating  the  militia.  He 
thought  "  such  a  power  necessary  to  be  given  to  the  gen- 
eral government.  He  hoped  there  would  be  no  standing 
army  in  time  of  peace,  unless  it  might  be  for  a  few  garrisons. 
The  militia  ought,  therefore,  to  be  the  more  effectually  pre- 
pared for  the  public  defence.  Thirteen  States  will  never 
concur  in  any  one  system,  if  the  disciplining  of  the  militia  be 
left  in  their  hands.  If  they  will  not  give  up  the  power  over 
the  whole,  they  probably  will  over  a  part,  as  a  select  militia." 
He  moved  to  refer  to  the  Committee  of  Detail,  "  a  power 
to  regulate  the  militia,**  as  one  of  the  prerogatives  of  the 
federal  legislature.  But  he  was  led  later  to  change  his 
mind  on  this  point.  Mr.  Rutledge  wished  to  refer  a  clause 
to  the  committee,  "  that  funds  appropriated  to  public  cred- 
itors should  not  be  diverted  to  other  purposes."  Colonel 
Mason  said  he  ''  was  much  attached  to  the  principle,  but 
was  afraid  such  a  fetter  might  be  dangerous  in  time  of  war. 
He  suggested  the  necessity  of  preventing  the  danger  of 
perpetual  revenue,  which  must  of  necessity  subvert  the 
liberty  of  any  country.  If  it  be  objected  to  on  the  princi- 
ple of  Mr.  Rutledge*s  motion,  that  public. credit  may  require 

'  /W</.,  p.  1347. 


158      UFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 


perpetual  provisions,  that  case  might  be  excepted,  it 
declared  that  in  other  cases  no  taxes  should  be  laid  for  a 
longer  term  than  .  .  .  years.  He  considered  the  caution 
observed  in  Great  Britain  on  this  point  as  the  palladium  of 
public  liberty." '  And  Colonel  Mason  interposed  later  a 
motion  that  the  committee  prepare  a  clause  for  restraining 
perpetual  revenue,  which  was  agreed  to  nem.  can.  A  grand 
committee  was  appointed  to  consider  the  necessity  and  ex- 
pediency of  the  United  States  assuming  all  the  State  debts, 
and  George  Mason  was  the  member  from  Vii^nia  placed  on 
this  committee.  Returning  to  the  subject  of  the  militia. 
Colonel  Mason  moved  to  give  Congress  power  "  to  make 
laws  for  the  regulation  and  discipline  of  the  militia  of  the 
several  States,  reserving  to  the  States  the  appointment  of 
the  officers."  He  considered  "  uniformity  as  necessary  in 
the  regulation  of  the  militia  throughout  the  Union." "  Mr. 
Ellsworth  ''  was  for  going  as  far  in  submitting  the  militia  to 
the  general  government,  as  might  be  necessary  ;  but  thought 
the  motion  of  Mr.  Mason  went  too  far."  And  Mr.  Dickin- 
son thought  the  States  ought  not  to  give  up  all  power  over 
the  militia.  Colonel  Mason  then  alluded  to  his  idea  of  a 
select  militia.  He  *'  was  led  to  think  that  would  be,  in  fact, 
as  much  as  the  general  government  could  advantageously  be 
charged  with.  He  was  afraid  of  creating  insuperable  objec- 
tions to  the  plan.  He  withdrew  his  original  motion,  and 
moved  a  power  *  to  make  laws  for  regulating  and  disciplining 
the  militia,  not  exceeding  one  tenth  part  in  any  one  year, 
and  reserving  the  appointment  of  officers  to  the  States.'  "  * 
General  Pinckney  renewed  Colonel  Mason's  original  motion. 
In  the  course  of  the  debate  that  followed,  Mr.  Sherman 
"  took  notice  that  the  States  might  want  their  militia " 
for  their  own  defence  and  for  other  purposes.  Colonel 
Mason  "  thought  there  was  great  weight  in  the  remarks 
of  Mr.  Sherman,"  and  moved  an  exception  to  his  motion, 
"  of  such  part  of  the  militia  as  might  be  required  by  the 
States   for   their   own    use,"   and    the   two    motions    were 

"  IHd.,  p.  1356.  •  Ihid.,  p.  1361.  ■  Ibid,,  p.  1362. 


QUALIFIED  SOVEREIGNTY  OF  THE   UNITED  STATES,  l^^ 

referred  to  the  grand  committee/  of  which  Mason  was  a 
member. 

George  Mason  about  this  time  moved  to  enable  Congress 
"  to  enact  sumptuary  laws."  No  government,  he  urged, 
'*  can  be  maintained  unless  the  manners  be  made  consonant 
to  it.  Such  a  discretionary  power  may  do  good,  and  can  do 
no  harm.  A  proper  regulation  of  excises  and  of  trade, 
may  do  a  great  deal ;  but  it  is  best  to  have  an  express  pro- 
vision. It  was  objected  to  sumptuary  laws,  that  they  were 
contrary  to  nature.  This  was  a  vulgar  error.  The  love  of 
distinction,  it  is  true,  is  natural ;  but  the  object  of  sump- 
tuary laws  is  not  to  extinguish  this  principle,  but  to  give  it  a 
proper  direction."  *     The  motion,  however,  was  not  carried.. 

On  the  20th  the  Convention  discussed  the  second  section 
of  article  seventh,  concerning  treason.  Colonel  Mason  was 
in  favor  of  pursuing  the  statute  of  Edward  III.  In  the 
course  of  the  discussion  it  was  contended  that  there  could 
be  no  treason  against  a  particular  State.  .Colonel  Mason 
replied  :  "  The  United  States  will  have  a  qualified  sovereignty 
only.  The  individual  States  will  retain  a  part  of  the  sover- 
eignty. An  act  may  be  treason  against  a  particular  State, 
which  is  not  so  against  the  United  States.  He  cited  the 
rebellion  of  Bacon  in  Virginia,  as  an  illustration  of  the  doc- 
trine." '  The  section  was  amended  so  as  to  read  **  Treason 
against  the  United  States  shall  consist  only  in  levying  war 
against  them,  or  in  adhering  to  their  enemies  ";  when  Colo- 
nel Mason  moved  to  insert  the  words,  "  giving  them  aid  and 
comfort,"  as  restrictive  of  "  adhering  to  their  enemies,"  etc. 
The  latter,  he  thought,**  would  be  otherwise  too  indefinite." 
And  this  motion  was  agreed  to.  On  the  2ist  George  Mason 
called  for  the  twelfth  section  of  article  sixth,  which  had  been 
postponed  on  the  1 5th.  He  **  wished  to  know  how  the  proposed 
amendment,  as  to  money-bills,  would  be  decided,  before  he 
agreed  to  any  further  points ";  but  the  subject  was  again 
postponed,  and  the  section  of  the  seventh  article  on  the 
power  of  taxing  exports  was  debated.     George  Mason  said  : 

*  /«</.,  p.  1364.  •  Ibid.^  p.  1369.  *  Ibid,,  p.  1373. 


l6o     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

**  If  he  were  for  reducing  the  States  to  mere  corporations,  as 
seemed  to  be  the  tendency  of  some  arguments,  he  should  be 
for  subjecting  their  exports  as  well  as  imports  to  a  power  of 
general  taxation.  He  went  on  a  principle  often  advanced 
and  in  which  he  concurred,  that  a  majority,  when  interested, 
will  oppress  the  minority.  This  maxim  had  been  verified 
by  our  own  legislature  [Vii^nia].  If  we  compare  the  States 
in  this  point  of  view,  the  eight  Northern  States  have  an 
interest  different  from  the  five  Southern  States ;  and  have, 

'  in  one  branch  of  the  legislature,  thirty-six  votes,  against 
twenty-nine,  and  in  the  other  in  the  proportion  of  eight 
against  five.  The  Southern  States  had  therefore  ground  for 
their  suspicions.  The  case  of  exports  was  not  the  same  with 
that  of  imports.  The  latter  were  the  same  throughout  the 
States;  the  former  very  different.  As  to  tobacco,  other 
nations  do  raise  it,  and  are  capable  of  raising  it,  as  well  as 
Virginia,  &c.  The  impolicy  of  taxing  that  article  had  been 
demonstrated  by  the  experiment  of  Virginia."  '  The  power 
to  tax  exports  was  denied  to  the  general  government,  and  Vir- 
ginia's  vote  against  it  was  due  to  Mason,  Randolph,  and  Blair. 
The  clause  allowing  the  importation  of  slaves  called  forth 
a  heated  debate.  George  Mason,  in  opposition  to  Mr.  Sher- 
man,  of  Connecticut,  who  was  for  leaving  the  clause  as  it 
stood,  made  a  speech  of  some  length.  "  This  infernal  traf- 
fic," he  said,  "  originated  in  the  avarice  of  British  merchants. 
The  British  Government  constantly  checked  the  attempts  of 

•  Virginia  to  put  a  stop  to  it.  The  present  question  concerns 
not  the  importing  States  alone,  but  the  whole  Union.  The 
evil  of  having  slaves  was  experienced  during  the  late  war. 
Had  slaves  been  treated  as  they  might  have  been  by  the 
enemy,  they  would  have  proved  dangerous  instruments  in 
their  hands.  But  their  folly  dealt  by  the  slaves  as  it  did  by 
the  Tories.  He  mentioned  the  dangerous  insurrection  of 
the  slaves  in  Greece  and  Sicily ;  and  the  instructions  given 
by  Cromwell  to  the  commissioners  sent  to  Vii^nia,  to  arm 
the  servants  and  slaves,  in  case  other  means  of  obtaining  its 

« yw</..  p.  1387. 


SPEECH  AGAINST   THE  SLAVE   TRADE.  l6l 

submission  should  fail.  Maryland  and  Virginia,  he  said,  had 
already  prohibited  the  importation  of  slaves  expressly — 
North  Carolina  had  done  the  same  in  substance.  All  this 
would  be  in  vain,  if  South  Carolina  and  Georgia  be  at  liberty 
to  import.  The  Western  people  are  already  calling  out  for  ^ 
slaves  for  their  new  lands ;  and  will  fill  that  country  with 
slaves,  if  they  can  be  got  through  South  Carolina  and  Georgia. 
Slavery  discourages  arts  and  manufactures.  The  poor  de-  ' 
spise  labor  when  performed  by  slaves.  They  prevent  the 
emigration  of  whites,  who  really  enrich  and  strengthen  a 
country.  They  produce  the  most  pernicious  effect  on  man- 
ners. Every  master  of  slaves  is  bom  a  petty  tyrant.  They 
bring  the  judgment  of  heaven  on  a  country.  As  nations 
cannot  be  rewarded  or  punished  in  the  next  world,  they 
must  be  in  this.  By  an  inevitable  chain  of  causes  and  effects. 
Providence  punishes  national  sins  by  national  calamities. 
He  lamented  that  some  of  our  Eastern  brethren  had,  from  a 
lust  of  gain,  embarked  in  this  nefarious  traffic.  As  to  the 
States  being  in  possession  of  the  right  to  import,  this 
was  the  case  with  many  other  rights,  now  to  be  properly 
given  up.  He  held  it  essential  in  every  point  of  view,  that 
the  general  government  should  have  power  to  prevent  the 
increase  of  slavery." '  George  Mason's  attitude  here  must 
not  be  misunderstood.  He  was  no  abolitionist  in  the  modern 
sense  of  the  term.  While  he  regretted  the  existence  of 
slavery  in  the  South  and  opposed  the  slave  trade,  at  the 
same  time  he  insisted  that  the  rights  of  his  section  in  this 
species  of  property  should  be  protected,  and  he  wished  for  a 
guarantee  in  the  Constitution  t6  insure  it.  He  is  himself  an 
instance  that  the  effect  of  slavery  on  manners  was  not  essen- 
tially deleterious.  No  doubt  this  was  the  case  in  individual 
instances,  but,  as  a  class,  there  were  no  nobler  men  nor  more 
gracious  women  than  the  old  slave-holding  aristocracy  of  the 
South,  from  whence  came  the  patriots  and  sages  of  1776, 
and  the  generation  that  gave  equally  shining  names  to  his- 
tory in  1 861.     As  the  Virginia  poet  sings: 

*  Ibid.,  p.  1391. 
Vol.  II— II 


1 62      UFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

**  Who  shall  bUme  the  socUl  order 

Which  gmve  us  men  ms  great  as  these  ? 
Who  condemn  the  soil  of  th'  forest 
Which  brings  forth  gigantic  trees  ?  " 

After  some  further  debate  on  this  clause  relating  to  slav- 
ery, Gouvemeur  Morris  proposed  that  the  whole  subject  be 
committed,  including  the  clauses  regarding  taxes  on  exports 
and  a  navigation  act.  **  These  things  may  farm  a  bargain 
among  the  Northern  and  Southern  States"  said  Morris.  This 
was  the  beginning  of  the  compact  so  reprobated  by  Colonel 
Mason,  which  altered  the  Constitution,  as  he  declared,  fun- 
damentally, and  made  it  impossible  for  him  to  subscribe  to  it. 
The  committee  was  appointed,  a  grand  committee,  including 
one  member  from  each  State,  and  Madison,  as  might  be 
expected,  was  the  choice  from  Virginia. 

While  the  seventh  article  was  under  consideration  some- 
what later,  it  was  moved  to  add,  as  an  additional  power  to  be 
given  to  the  general  legislature,  a  negative  on  all  the  laws 
of  the  several  States  interfering  with  the  interests  of  the 
Union,  provided  two  thirds  of  each  House  assent  to  the 
same.  Colonel  Mason  "  wished  to  know  how  the  power  was 
to  be  exercised.  Are  all  laws  whatever  to  be  brought  up  ? 
Is  no  road  nor  bridge  to  be  established  without  the  sanction 
of  the  general  legislature  ?  Is  this  to  sit  constantly  in  order 
to  receive  and  revise  the  State  laws?  He  did  not  mean  by 
the  remarks,  to  condemn  the  expedient ;  but  he  was  appre- 
hensive that  great  objections  would  lie  against  it."  *  The 
grand  committee,  to  whom  the  subject  had  been  referred,  had 
given  to  the  United  States  power  to  assume  the  several 
State  debts,  making  their  report  on  the  2ist,  and  on  the  25th 
the  Convention  modified  this  decision,  simply  affirming  "  that 
the  engagements  of  the  Confederation  should  be  equally 
valid  against  the  United  States  under  this  Constitution." 
Colonel  Mason  "objected  to  the  term  *  shall*  fulfil  the  en- 
gagements and  discharge  the  debts,  &c.,  as  too  strong.  It 
may  be  impossible  to  comply  with  it.     The  creditors  should 

'  IHd.^  p.  14 10. 


AN  OBNOXIOUS  BARGAIN  CONSUMMATED,  163 

be  kept  in  the  same  plight.  They  will  in  one  respect  be 
necessarily  and  properly  in  a  better.  The  government  will 
be  more  able  to  pay  them.  The  use  of  the  term  shall  will 
beget  speculations,  and  increase  the  pestilential  practice  of 
stock-jobbing.  There  was  a  great  distinction  between  origi- 
nal creditors  and  those  who  purchased  fraudulently  of  the 
ignorant  and  distressed.  He  did  not  mean  to  include  those 
who  have  bought  stock  in  the  open  market.  He  was  sensible 
of  the  difficulty  of  drawing  the  line  in  this  case,  but  he  did  not 
wish  to  preclude  the  attempt.  Even  fair  purchasers,  at  four, 
five,  six,  eight  for  one,  did  not  stand  on  the  same  footing 
with  the  first  holders,  supposing  them  not  to  be  blamable. 
The  interest  they  received,  even  in  paper,  is  equal  to  their 
purchase  money.  What  he  particularly  wished  was,  to  leave 
the  door  open  for  buying  up  the  securities,  which  he  thought 
would  be  precluded  by  the  term  *  shall '  as  requiring  nominal 
payment^  and  which  was  not  inconsistent  with  his  ideas  of 
public  faith.  He  was  afraid,  also,  the  word  *  j/W/*  might  ex- 
tend to  all  the  old  continental  paper."  '  On  this  same  day 
the  report  of  the  committee  of  eleven  delivered  into  the 
Convention  the  twenty-fourth,  allowing  the  importation  of 
"  such  persons  as  the  several  States  now  existing,  shall  think 
proper  to  admit  '*  etc.,  was  discussed.  Gouverneur  Morris  was 
for  making  this  clause  read  "  the  importation  of  slaves  into 
North  Carolina,  South  Carolina  and  Georgia  shall  not  be 
prohibited,"  etc.  George  Mason  was  not  "  against  using  the 
term  '  slaves,'  but  against  naming  North  Carolina,  South 
Carolina  and  Georgia,  lest  it  should  give  offence  to  the 
people  of  those  States.*  The  year  1800  was  fixed  in  the 
report  as  the  term  when  the  importation  of  slaves  should 
cease.  This  was  changed  to  1808.  Objections  were 
made  by  Sherman  to  the  tax  on  slaves  as  acknowledging 
them  to  be  property,  to  which  Colonel  Mason  replied,  "  not 
to  tax,  will  be  equivalent  to  a  bounty  on,  the  importation  of 
slaves."  ■  Gouverneur  Morris  remarked,  that  as  the  clause 
stood  it  implied  that  the  legislature  might  tax  freemen  im- 

*  Ibid,,  p.  1425.  *  Ibid,,  p.  1428.  ■  Ibid,,  p.  1429. 


164      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

ported  ;  to  which  Colonel  Mason  replied  :  "  The  provision, 
as  it  stands,  was  necessary  for  the  case  of  convicts,  in  order 
to  prevent  the  introduction  of  them."  It  was  finally  amended 
so  as  to  read  "  importation  "  only,  instead  of  "  migration 
and  importation,"  as  in  the  report  of  the  committee.* 

Certain  propositions  made  in  regard  to  regulating  trade 
were  referred  to  a  grand  committee,  and  George  Mason  was 
the  member  selected  for  Virginia,  the  choice  being  made  as 
usual  by  ballot.'  Colonel  Mason  and  Mr.  Madison  moved 
to  add  to  the  oath  to  be  taken  by  the  supreme  executive 
"  and  will,  to  the  best  of  my  judgment  and  power,  preserve, 
protect,  and  defend  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States," 
which  amendment  passed.  Article  eleven,  section  second, 
having  reference  to  the  salaries  of  the  judges,  was  consid- 
ered, and  it  was  urged  to  reinstate  the  words  "  increased  or," 
before  the  word  "  diminished."  Colonel  Mason  contended 
strenuously  for  the  motion.  "  There  was  no  weight,"  he  said, 
"  in  the  argument  drawn  from  changes  in  the  value  of  the 
metals,  because  this  might  be  provided  for  by  an  increase  of 
salaries,  so  made  as  not  to  affect  persons  in  office ;  and  this 
was  the  only  argument  on  which  much  stress  seemed  to  have 
been  laid."  "  The  amendment,  however,  was  not  made.  A 
proposition  followed,  to  prohibit  the  States  from  interfering 
in  private  contracts,  and  Mr.  Madison  conceived  "that  a 
negative  on  the  State  laws  could  alone  secure  the  effect." 
George  Mason  replied :  "  This  is  carrying  the  restraint  too 
far.  Cases  will  happen  that  cannot  be  foreseen  where  some 
kind  of  interference  will  be  proper  and  essential.  He  men- 
tioned the  case  of  limiting  the  period  for  bringing  actions 
on  open  account — that  of  bonds  after  a  certain  lapse  of  time 
— asking  whether  it  was  proper  to  tie  the  hands  of  the 
States  from  making  provision  in  such  cases."  *  A  motion 
was  made  restricting  the  power  of  the  States,  in  the  words, 
"  nor  pass  bills  of  attainder,  nor  retrospective  laws,"  which 
received  the  assent  of  the  Convention,  Virginia,  however, 

»  Ibid.,  p.  1430.  •  Ibid.,  p.  1437. 

•  Ibid,,  p.  1432.  *  Ibid.,  p.  1443. 


RESTRICTIONS  ON   THE  POWERS  OF   THE  STATES.   1 65 

voting  against  it.  Madison  then  moved  to  insert  ''  nor  lay 
embargoes."  Colonel  Mason  thought  "the  amendment 
would  be  not  only  improper  but  dangerous,  as  the  general 
legislature  would  not  sit  constantly,  and  therefore  could  not 
interpose  at  the  necessary  moments.  He  enforced  his  ob- 
jection by  appealing  to  the  necessity  of  sudden  embargoes, 
during  the  war,  to  prevent  exports,  particularly  in  the  case  of 
a  blockade."  '  The  motion  was  lost.  Madison  moved  next 
that  the  prohibition, "  nor  lay  imposts  or  duties  on  imports," 
be  transferred  from  article  thirteen,  where  the  consent  of  . 
the  general  legislature  may  license  the  act,  to  article  twelve, 
which  would  make  the  prohibition  absolute.  To  this  George 
Mason  observed,  "that  particular  States  might  wish  to 
encourage,  by  impost  duties,  certain  manufactures,  for  ' 
which  they  enjoyed  natural  advantages,  as  Virginia  the 
manufacture  of  hemp,  &c."  *  This  motion  was  lost ;  but 
coming  to  article  thirteen  it  was  moved  to  insert  after  the 
word  "  imports  '*  the  words  "  or  exports,"  which  passed  by  a 
majority  of  one  only,  all  the  Southern  States  except  North 
Carolina  being  in  the  negative. 

On  the  29th  of  August  the  Convention  took  up  the  im- 
portant section  of  article  seven  relating  to  navigation  acts, 
which  the  committee  of  eleven  had,  in  accordance  with  the 
compromise  before  mentioned,  reported  to  be  struck  out. 
This  provision  required  the  assent  of  two  thirds  of  the  mem- 
bers present  in  each  House  to  pass  a  navigation  act.  Mr. 
Pinckney  moved  to  postpone  the  report  in  favor  of  the 
following  proposition :  "  That  no  act  of  the  legislature  for 
the  purpose  of  regulating  the  commerce  of  the  United 
States  with  foreign  powers,  among  the  several  States,  shall 
be  passed  without  the  assent  of  two  thirds  of  the  members 
of  each  House."  Colonel  Mason  spoke  with  much  feeling 
on  the  subject : 

"  If  the  government  is  to  be  lasting  it  must  be  founded  in  the 
confidence  and  affections  of  the  people ;  and  must  be  so  con- 

'  Ibid,,  p.  1444.  •  Ibid.,  p.  1445. 


l66     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OP  GEORGE  MASON. 

structed  as  to  obtain  these.  The  majority  will  be  governed  by 
their  interests.  The  Southern  States  are  the  minority  in  both 
Houses.  Is  it  to  be  expected  that  they  will  deliver  themselves 
bound,  hand  and  foot,  to  the  Eastern  States,  and  enable  them  to 
exclaim,  in  the  words  of  Cromwell,  on  a  certain  occasion — '  the 
Lord  hath  delivered  them  into  our  hands  '  ? "  * 

The  question  to  postpone  was  lost,  South  Carolina  joining 
with  the  Northern  States  in  their  unanimous  vote  against 
it.  The  report  striking  out  section  sixth  was  agreed  to,  and 
thus  the  die  was  cast  and  the  way  made  easy  for  that  sec- 
tional legislation  which  was  to  lead  at  length  to  the  Nullifi- 
cation crisis,  and  was  to  be  one  of  the  causes  of  the  war 
between  the  States. 

In  considering  article  seventeen  relating  to  the  admission 
of  new  States,  Gouvemeur  Morris  made  a  fresh  motion,  put- 
ting restrictions  on  them,  and  Madison  and  Mason  both 
opposed  him.  Colonel  Mason  said :  "If  it  were  possible  by 
just  means  to  prevent  emigration  to  the  western  country, 
it  might  be  good  policy.  But  go  the  people  will,  as  they 
find  it  for  their  interest;  and  the  best  policy  is  to  treat 
them  with  that  equality  which  will  make  them  friends  not 
enemies." "  On  the  question  of  filling  the  blank  in  article 
twenty-one  naming  the  number  of  States  sufficient  for  rati- 
fying the  Constitution,  thirteen,  ten,  nine,  and  eight  were  all 
suggested.  George  Mason  was  for  "  preserving  ideas  familiar 
to  the  people.  Nine  States  had  been  required  in  all  great 
cases  under  the  Confederation,  and  that  number  was  on  that 
account  preferable."  "  Article  twenty-second  was  taken  up  : 
"  This  Constitution  shall  be  laid  before  the  United  States  in 
Congress  assembled,  for  their  approbation,  etc.,"  and  it  was 
moved  by  Mr.  Gerry  to  postpone  it.  George  Mason  "  sec- 
onded the  motion,  declaring  that  he  would  sooner  chop  off 
his  right  hand,  than  put  it  to  the  Constitution  as  it  now 
stands.  He  wished  to  see  some  points,  not  yet  decided, 
brought  to  a  decision,  before  being  compelled  to  give  a  final 
opinion  on  this  article.     Should  these  points  be  improperly 

» IHd,,  p.  1453.  *  Ibid,,  p.  1457.  *  [hid.,  p.  1473. 


COLONEL  MASON* S  EMPHATIC  DISAPPROBATION.       167 

settled,  his  wish  would  then  be  to*  bring  the  whole  subject 
before  another  general  convention."  *  Gouvemeur  Morris 
on  the  3d  of  September,  moved  to  amend  the  report  con- 
cerning the  respect  to  be  paid  acts,  records,  etc.,  of  one  State 
in  other  States  so  as  to  read,  "  and  the  legislature  shall,  by 
general  laws,  prescribe  the  manner  in  which  such  acts,  rec- 
ords, and  proceedings  shall  be  proved,  and  the  effect  thereof," 
instead  of  ''  and  the  effect  which  judgments  obtained  in  one 
State  shall  have  in  another.'*  Colonel  Mason  favored  the 
met  ion,  particularly  if  the  ''  effect "  was  to  be  restrained  to 
judgments  and  judicial  proceedings.* 

Certain  parts  of  the  Constitution  had  been  referred  to  a 
grand  committee  on  the  31st  of  August,  Madison  being  the 
delegate  from  Virginia  on  the  committee,  and  their  report 
was  made  the  4th  of  September.  Much  of  it  referred  to  the 
Executive,  the  manner  of  his  election,  etc.  He  was  to  be 
balloted  for  by  electors,  not  chosen  by  the  legislature,  was  to 
sen^e  for  four  years  instead  of  seven,  but  in  case  more  than 
one  candidate  had  a  majority  of  votes,  then  the  Senate  was 
to  choose  by  ballot  one  of  these  candidates  for  President. 
Colonel  Mason  ''  confessed  that  the  plan  of  the  committee 
had  removed  some  capital  objections,  particularly  the  danger 
of  cabal  and  corruption.  It  was  liable,  however,  to  this 
strong  objection,  that  nineteen  times  in  twenty  the  President 
would  be  chosen  by  the  Senate,  an  improper  body  for  the 
purpose."  ■  The  question  was  debated  the  following  day, 
when  George  Mason  spoke  as  follows.  He  "  admitted  that 
there  were  objections  to  an  appointment  by  the  legislature, 
as  originally  planned.  He  had  not  yet  made  up  his  mind, 
but  would  state  his  objections  to  the  mode  proposed  by  the 
committee.  First,  it  puts  the  appointment  in  fact  into  the 
hands  of  the  Senate,  as  it  will  rarely  happen  that  a  majority 
of  the  whole  vote  will  fall  on  any  one  candidate  ;  and  as  the 
existing  President  will  always  be  one  of  the  five  highest,  his 
reappointment  will  of  course  depend  on  the  Senate.  Sec- 
ondly, considering  the  powers  of  the  President  and  those  of 

'  Ibid,,  p.  1475.  •  Ibid,^  p.  1480.  •  Ibid,,  p.  1490. 


1 68      UFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

the  Senate,  if  a  coalition  should  be  established  between 
these  two  branches,  they  will  be  able  to  subvert  the  Con- 
stitution. The  great  objection  with  him  would  be  removed 
by  depriving  the  Senate  of  the  eventual  election."  *  He 
accordingly  moved  to  strike  out  the  words  "  if  such  number 
be  a  majority  of  that  of  the  electors.**  This  would  make 
the  person  having  the  highest  number  of  votes,  though  not 
a  majority,  President.  Gouverneur  Morris  thought  the 
point  of  no  great  consequence,  and  that  it  was  probable 
that  a  majority  of  votes  would  fall  on  the  same  man.  Cclo- 
nel  Mason  replied  :  "  Those  who  think  there  is  no  danger  of 
there  not  being  a  majority  for  the  same  person  in  the  first 
instance,  ought  to  give  up  the  point  to  those  who  think  oth- 
erwise.'** George  Mason's  motion  was  lost  by  a  la^e 
majority.  Then,  after  several  other  propositions  made  by 
different  members,  Colonel  Mason  moved  to  strike  out  the 
word  "  five  "  and  insert  the  word  **  three,**  as  the  highest 
candidates  for  the  Senate  to  choose  from,  which  motion  vas 
also  lost.  He  continued  his  objections :  "  As  the  mode  of 
appointment  is  now  regulated,  he  could  not  forbear  express- 
ing his  opinion  that  it  is  utterly  inadmissible.  He  would 
prefer  the  government  of  Prussia  to  one  which  will  put  all 
power  into  the  hands  of  seven  or  eight  men,  and  fix  an 
aristocracy  worse  than  absolute  monarchy.'* "  This  question 
coming  up  again  the  following  day,  it  was  proposed  that  an 
eventual  choice  should  be  made  by  the  House  in  conjunction 
with  the  Senate,  and  finally  that  the  House  of  Representa- 
tives be  substituted  for  the  Senate.  Colonel  Mason  "  liked 
the  latter  mode  best  as  lessening  the  aristocratic  influence  of 
the  Senate,"  and  the  motion  was  agreed  to  by  an  almost 
unanimous  vote.*  Other  amendments  were  made  which 
met  with  George  Mason*s  approval,  and  the  clause  received 
its  final  form. 

In  considering  the  section,  "  the  Vice-President  shall  be 
ex-officio  president  of  the  Senate,**  Colonel  Mason  spoke  at 

*  IHd,y  p.  1499.  *  IHd,^  p.  1503. 

•  /W</.,  p.  1499.  *  Ibid,,  p.  1511. 


DESIRES  A   PRIVY  COUNCIL  FOR   THE  PRESIDENT.        169 

some  length.  He  "  thought  the  office  of  Vice-President  an 
encroachment  on  the  rights  of  .the  Senate,  and  that  it  mixed 
too  much  the  legislative  and  the  executive,  which,  as  well  as 
the  judiciary  department,  ought  to  be  kept  as  separate  as 
possible.  He  took  occasion  to  express  his  dislike  of  any 
reference  whatever,  of  the  power  to  make  appointments,  to 
either  branch  of  the  legislature.  On  the  other  hand,  he  was 
averse  to  vest  so  dangerous  a  power  in  the  President  alone. 
As  a  method  for  avoiding  both,  he  suggested  that  a  privy 
council,  of  six  members,  to  the  President,  should  be  estab- 
lished, to  be  chosen  for  six  years  by  the  Senate,  two  out  of 
the  Eastern,  two  out  of  the  Middle,  and  two  out  of  the 
Southern  quarters  of  the  Union ;  and  to  go  out  in  rota* 
tion,  two  every  second  year,  the  concurrence  of  the  Senate 
to  be  required  only  in  the  appointment  of  ambassadors,  and 
in  making  treaties,  which  are  more  of  a  legislative  nature. 
This  would  prevent  the  constant  sitting  of  the  Senate,  which 
he  thought  dangerous,  as  well  as  keep  the  departments 
separate  and  distinct.  It  would  also  save  the  expense  of 
constant  sessions  of  the  Senate.  He  had,  he  said,  always 
considered  the  Senate  as  too  unwieldy  and  expensive  for 
appointing  officers,  especially  the  smallest,  such  as  tide- 
waiters,  &c.  He  had  not  reduced  his  idea  to  writing,  but  it 
could  be  easily  done,  if  it  should  be  found  acceptable.*' ' 
This  idea  of  a  council  was  supported  by  Mr.  Wilson,  but 
opposed  by  Mr.  King.  Colonel  Mason  then  said,  "  that  in 
rejecting  a  council  to  the  President  we  were  about  to  try  an 
experiment  on  which  the  most  despotic  governments  had 
never  ventured.  The  Grand  Seignior  himself  had  his  divan. 
He  moved  to  postpone  the  consideration  of  the  clause 
["  and  may  require  the  opinion  in  writing  of  the  principal 
officer  in  each  of  the  Executive  Departments,  upon  any  sub- 
ject relating  to  the  duties  of  their  respective  offices,"]  in 
order  to  take  up  the  following :  '  That  it  be  an  instruction 
to  the  Committee  of  the  States  to  prepare  a  clause  or 
clauses  for  establishing  an   Executive  Council,  as  a  Coun- 

*  Ibid.^  p.  1518. 


I/O     LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

cil  of  State,  for  the  President  of  the  United  States,  to  con- 
sist of  six  members,  two  of  which  from  the  Eastern,  two 
from  the  Middle,  and  two  from  the  Southern  States,  with  a 
rotation  and  duration  of  office  similar  to  those  of  the  Senate: 
such  Council  to  be  appointed  by  the  Legislature  or  by  the 
Senate.' "  * 

This  motion,  seconded  by  Dr.  Franklin  and  approved  of 
by  Madison  and  others,  was  rejected  by  the  Convention. 

The  Constitution  on  the  8th  of  September  was  referred  to 
a  committee  of  five  to  revise  the  style.  Johnson,  Hamilton, 
Morris,  Madison,  and  King  composed  this  committee,  and 
the  final  draft  of  the  Constitution  was  the  work  of  Gouv- 
emeur  Morris.  The  clause  referring  to  the  Senate  the  trial 
of  impeachments  against  the  President  was  taken  up  by  the 
Convention  on  the  8th,  and  George  Mason  inquired  : 

"  Why  is  the  provision  restrained  to  treason  and  bribery  only  ? 
Treason,  as  defined  in  the  Constitution,  will  not  reach  many  great 
and  dangerous  offences.  Hastings  is  not  guilty  of  treason.  At- 
tempts to  subvert  the  Constitution  may  not  be  treason,  as  above 
defined.  As  bills  of  attainder,  which  have  saved  the  British 
constitution,  are  forbidden,  it  is  the  more  necessary  to  extend  the 
power  of  impeachments." 

He  moved  to  add,  after  "  bribery,"  "  or  maladministra^ 
tion."  Colonel  Mason  was  seconded  by  Mr.  Gerry,  but 
Madison  objecting  to  the  vagueness  of  the  term  "  mal- 
administration," he  withdrew  it  and  substituted  "  other  high 
crimes  and  misdemeanours  "  [against  the  State].  The  ques- 
tion then  passed  in  the  affirmative.*  The  word  "  State  " 
was  afterwards  struck  out  and  "  United  States "  unani- 
mously inserted,  to  prevent  ambiguity.  But  these  words 
"  United  States  "  were  finally  struck  out  by  the  committee 
on  style.  On  the  loth  Edmund  Randolph  stated  at  some 
length  his  objections  to  the  Constitution  as  now  formulated. 
He  made  a  motion  to  submit  the  system  to  the  Congress, 
thence  to  the  State  legislatures  and  conventions,  the  pro- 

*  Ibid.,  p.  1523.  •  Ibid.,  p.  1528. 


k 


WISHES   TO  HAVE  A   BILL  OF  RIGHTS.  I7I 

cess  to  close  with  another  general  convention,  with  power 
to  adopt  or  reject  amendments  proposed  by  the  State  con- 
ventions. Colonel  Mason  ''  urged  and  obtained  that  the 
motion  should  lie  on  the  table  for  a  day  or  two,  to  see  what 
steps  might  be  taken  with  regard  to  the  parts  of  the  system 
objected  to  by  Mr.  Randolph."  On  the  12th  the  Committee 
of  Style  and  Arrangement  reported  the  Constitution,  and  it 
was  moved  to  reconsider  the  clause  requiring  three  fourths 
of  each  House  to  overrule  the  negative  of  the  President,  and 
insert  two  thirds.  Gouvemeur  Morris  said  the  difference  in 
the  two  proportions  amounted  "  in  one  House  to  two  mem- 
bers only ;  and  in  the  other  to  not  more  than  five."  George 
Mason  said  he  "  had  always  considered  this  as  one  of  the 
most  exceptionable  parts  of  the  system.  As  to  the  numeri- 
cal argument  of  Mr.  Gouverneur  Morris,  little  arithmetic  was 
necessary  to  understand  that  three  fourths  was  more  than 
two  thirds,  whatever  the  numbers  of  the  legislature  might 
be.  The  example  [given  by  Morris  and  Hamilton]  of  New 
York  depended  on  the  real  merits  of  the  laws.  The  gentle- 
men citing  it  had  no  doubt  given  their  own  opinions.  But 
perhaps  there  were  others  of  opposite  opinions  who  could 
equally  paint  the  abuses  on  the  other  side.  His  leading 
view  was  to  guard  against  too  great  an  impediment  to  the 
repeal  of  laws."  *  The  amendment  was  made,  Virginia's 
vote  counting  in  the  negative,  however,  as  Mason  and 
Randolph  were  opposed  by  Washington,  Blair,  and  Madi- 
son. It  was  then  observed  that  no  provision  was  made  for 
juries  in  civil  cases,  to  which  Mr.  Gorham  replied  :  "  It  is 
not  possible  to  discriminate  equity  cases  from  those  in  which 
juries  are  proper."  fcolonel  Mason  said  he  "perceived  tKe| 
difficulty  mentionea  by  Mr.  Gorham.  The  jury  cases  can-' 
not  be  specified.  A  general  principle  laid  down,  on  this 
and  some  other  points,  would  be  sufficient.  He  wished  the 
plan  had  been  prefaced  with  a  Bill  of  Rights,  and  would 
second  a  motion  if  made  for  the  purpose.  It  would  give 
great  quiet  to  the  people ;  and  with  the  aid  of  the  State 

*  Ibid,^  p.  1563. 


>/ 


172      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON, 

Declarations,  a  bill  might  be  prepared  in  a  few  hours."     Mr. 
Gerry  concurred  in  the  idea,  and  moved  for  a  committee  to 
prepare  a  Bill  of  Rights,  George  Mason  seconding  the  motion. 
Mr.  Sherman  thought  it  was  not  required,  as   the   State  j" 
Declarations  of  Rights  were  not  repealed  by  this  Constitution.   : 
Colonel  Mason  replied :     "  The  laws  of  the  United  States 
are  to  be  paramount  to  State  Bills  of  Rights/^  On  the 
question  for  a  committee  to  prepare  a  Bill  of  Rights,  five* 
States  voted  in  the  affirmative  and  the  five  Southern  States 
in  the  negative.    Massachusetts  was  absent.'    Virginia's  vote' 
probably  went  as  before,  Washington,  Blair,  and  Madison 
against  Mason  and  Randolph. 

The  clause  relating  to  exports  was  reconsidered  at  the 
instance  of  Colonel  Mason,  who  urged  "  that  the  restrictions 
on  the  States  would  prevent  the  incidental  duties  necessary 
for  the  inspection  and  safe-keeping  of  their  produce,  and  be 
ruinous  to  the  Staple  States,  as  he  called  the  five  Southern 
States.  He  moved  as  follows :  "  Provided  nothing  herein 
contained  shall  be  construed  to  restrain  any  State  from  lay- 
ing duties  upon  exports  for  the  sole  purpose  of  defraying 
the  charges  of  inspecting,  packing,  storing,  and  indemnify- 
ing the  losses  in  keeping  the  commodities  in  the  care  of 
public  officers,  before  exportation."  In  answer  to  a  remark 
which  he  anticipated — to  wit,  that  the  States  could  provide 
for  these  expenses  by  a  tax  in  some  other  way,  he  stated 
the  inconvenience  of  requiring  the  planters  to  pay  a  tax 
before  the  actual  delivery  for  exportation.  Mr.  Madison 
seconded  the  motion,  but  the  Convention  soon  after  ad- 
journed without  further  action  in  the  matter.  The  next  day 
George  Mason,  who  was  the  first  to  address  the  Convention, 
said  he  *'  had  moved  without  success  for  a  power  to  make 
sumptuary  regulations.  He  had  not  yet  lost  sight  of  his 
object.  After  descanting  on  the  extravagance  of  our  man- 
ners, the  excessive  consumption  of  foreign  superfluities,  and 
the  necessity  of  restricting  it,  as  well  with  economical  as 
republican  views,  he  moved  that  a  committee  be  appointed 

'  /W</.,  p.  1566. 


AGAINST  VESTING  FURTHER  POWERS  IN  CONGRESS,  173 

to  report  articles  of  association  for  encouraging,  by  the 
advice,  the  influence,  and  the  example  of  the  members  of 
the  Convention,  economy,  frugality,  and  American  manu- 
factures." The  motion  was  seconded  and  without  debate 
agreed  to,  and  a  committee  of  five  appointed,  Colonel 
Mason  at  the  head  of  it.  But  no  report,  it  seems,  was 
ever  made  by  this  committee.  George.  Mason  renewed  at 
this  time  his  proposition  of  the  day  before  "  on  the  subject 
of  inspection  laws,  with  an  additional  clause  giving  to  Con- 
gress a  control  over  them  in  case  of  abuse — as  follows : 
'  Provided,  that  no  State  shall  be  restrained  from  imposing 
the  usual  duties  on  produce  exported  from  such  State,  for 
the  sole  purpose  of  defraying  the  charges  of  inspecting, 
packing,  storing,  and  indemnifying  the  losses  on  such 
produce,  while  in  the  custody  of  public  officers;  but  all 
such  regulations  shall,  in  case  of  abuse,  be  subject  to  the 
revision  and  control  of  Congress.'  "  There  was  no  debate, 
and  the  question  passed  in  the  affirmative.' 

In  considering  the  section,  "  Each  \House  shall  keep  a 
journal  of  its  proceedings,  and  from  ume  to  time  publish 
the  same,  excepting  such  parts  as  may  in  their  judgment 
require  secrecy,"  Colonel  Mason  and  Mr.  Gerry  moved  to 
insert  after  the  word  **  parts  "  the  words  "  of  the  proceedings 
of  the  Senate,"  so  as  to  require  publication  of  all  the  pro- 
ceedings of  the  House  of  Representatives.  But  the  question 
passed  in  the  negative.*  Dr.  Franklin  moved  to  add  to  the 
powers  vested  in  Congress  "  to  provide  for  cutting  canals 
where  deemed  necessary."  Madison  wished  to  enlarge  the 
motion,  "  to  grant  charters  of  incorporation,  &c."  Colonel 
Mason  was  for  **  limiting  the  power  to  the  single  case  of 
canals.  He  was  afraid  of  monopolies  of  every  sort,  which 
he  did  not  think  were  by  any  means  already  implied  by  the 
Constitution,  as  supposed  by  Mr.  Wilson."'  The  motion, 
however,  limiting  the  power  to  the  case  of  canals,  was  lost. 
Colonel  Mason,  ''  being  sensible  that  an  absolute  prohibition 
of  standing  armies  in  time  of  peace  might  be  unsafe,  and 

*  Ibid.,  p.  1569.  •  Ibid.,  p.  1573.  ■  Ibid,,  p.  1577. 


174     ^^P^  ^^^   CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

wishing  at  the  same  time  to  insert  something  pointing  out 
and  guarding  against  the  danger  of  them,  moved  to  preface 
the  clause  (Art.  I.,  Sect.  8),  *  to  provide  for  organizing,  arm- 
ing, and  disciplining  the  militia,  &c./  with  the  words  '  and 
that  the  liberties  of  the  people  may  be  better  secured 
against  the  danger  of  standing  armies  in  time  of  peace.' "  * 
Both  Randolph  and  Madison  were  in  favor  of  the  motion, 
but  only  two  States,  Virginia  and  Georgia,  voted  for  it. 
George  Mason  then  moved  to  strike  out  from  the  clause 
(Art.  I.,  Sect.  9)  "  no  bill  of  attainder,  nor  any  ex  post  facto 
law,  shall  be  passed,"  the  words  "nor  any  ex  post  facto 
law."  He  "  thought  it  not  sufficiently  clear  that  the  prohi- 
bition meant  by  this  phrase  was  limited  to  cases  of  a  criminal 
nature ;  and  no  legislature  ever  did  or  can  altogether  avoid 
them  in  civil  cases." '  All  the  States  opposed  the  motion, 
however.  In  Article  I.,  Section  9,  it  was  moved  by  Colo- 
nel Mason  to  insert  the  words  "  or  enumeration  "  after,  as 
explanatory  of,  "  census."  He  also  moved  a  clause  requiring 
''  that  an  account  of  the  public  expenditures  should  be  annu- 
ally published."  The  motion  was  altered  by  striking  out 
"  annually  "  and  inserting  "  from  time  to  time,"  and  passed 
in  this  form.*  The  subject  of  inspection  laws  was  again 
taken  up,  and,  in  consequence  of  the  proviso  moved  by 
George  Mason,  and  agreed  to  by  the  Convention  on  the 
13th,  this  part  of  the  section  was  laid  aside  in  favor  of  the 
form  now  in  the  Constitution  (Art.  I.,  Sect.  10).  But  a 
motion  to  strike  out  the  last  words  of  the  paragraph,  "  and 
all  such  laws  shall  be  subject  to  the  revision  and  control  of 
the  Congress,"  passed  in  the  negative.  All  the  States  then 
agreed  to  the  substitute  except  Virginia.*  Messrs.  Mc- 
Henry  and  Carroll,  of  Maryland,  moved  that  "  no  State 
shall  be  restrained  from  laying  duties  of  tonnage  for  the 
purpose  of  clearing  harbours  and  erecting  light-houses." 
Colonel  Mason,  in  support  of  this  motion,  "  explained  and 
urged  the   situation  of  the   Cheisapeake,   which   peculiarly 

» Ibid.,  p.  1578.  •  IHd„  p.  1581. 

•  Ibid,,  p.  1579.  «  Ibid,,  p.  1584. 


HIS  MOTION  IN  REGARD   TO  NAVIGATION  ACTS.        1 75 

required  expenses  of  this  sort/'  But  in  place  of  this  right 
reserved  the  motion  passed  "  that  no  State  shall  lay  any 
duty  on  tonnage  without  the  consent  of  Congress."  *  On 
the  subject  of  the  power  of  the  Executive  to  grant  reprieves 
and  pardons,  Edmund  Randolph  moved  to  except  **  cases 
of  treason/*  and  Colonel  Mason  supported  the  motion. 
Madison  thought  the  Senate  should  share  this  power  with 
the  President,  if  it  was  to  be  given  to  the  latter.  Colonel 
Mason  replied  **  that  the  Senate  has  already  too  much 
power.  There  can  be  no  danger  of  too  much  lenity  in 
legislative  pardons,  as  the  Senate  must  concur;  and  the 
President  moreover  can  require  two  thirds  of  both  Houses."  * 

The  motion  received  the  support  of  only  two  States,  Vir- 
ginia and  Georgia.  George  Mason  thought  the  plan  of 
amending  the  Constitution  **  exceptionable  and  dangerous. 
As  the  proposing  of  amendments  is  in  both  the  modes 
to  depend,  in  the  first  immediately,  and  in  the  second 
ultimately,  on  Congress,  no  amendments  of  the  proper  kind 
would  ever  be  obtained  by  the  people,  if  the  government 
should  become  oppressive,  as  he  verily  believed  would  be 
the  case/*  • 

Returning  for  the  last  time  to  a  subject  which  he  considered 
of  vital  importance,  Colonel  Mason  expressed  "  his  discontent 
at  the  power  given  to  Congress,  by  a  bare  majority  to  pass 
navigation  acts,  which  he  said  would  not  only  enhance  the 
freight,  a  consequence  he  did  not  so  much  regard,  but  would 
enable  a  few  rich  merchants  in  Philadelphia,  New  York  and 
Boston,  to  monopolize  the  staples  of  the  Southern  States, 
and  reduce  their  value  perhaps  fifty  per  cent."  He  then 
moved  "  that  no  law  in  the  nature  of  a  navigation  act  be 
passed  before  the  year  1808,  without  the  consent  of  two 
thirds  of  each  branch  of  the  Legislature."  *  Maryland,  Vir- 
ginia, and  Georgia  were  the  only  States  that  voted  in  the  affirm- 
ative on  this  motion.  North  Carolina  was  absent,  and  South 
Carolina  apparently  regarded  herself  as  pledged  to  Northern 

•  Idui,,  p.  1586.  •  IM,,  p.  1591. 

•  IHd.,  p.  1588.  *  I&ii/.,  p.  1593. 


176      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

interests  here.     Edmund  Randolph  animadverted  on  the  in- 
definite and  dangerous  power  given  by  the  Constitution  to 
Congress,  and  he  made  a  motion  ''  that  amendments  to  the 
plan  might  be  offered  by  the  State  conventions,  which  should 
be  submitted  to,  and  finally  decided  on  by,  another  general 
convention."     George  Mason  seconded  the  motion,  and  fol- 
lowed Randoph  in  strictures  "  on  the  dangerous  power  and 
structure  of  the  government,  concluding  that  it  would  end; 
either  in  monarchy,  or  a  tyrannical  aristocracy ;  which,  he 
was  in  doubt,  but  one  or  other,  he  was  sure.     This  Constitu-'* 
tion  had  been  formed  without  the  knowledge  or  idea  of  the  • 
people.     A  second  convention  will  know  more  of  the  sense 
of  the  people,  and  be  able  to  provide  a  system  more  conso- 
nant to  it.     It  was  improper  to  say  to  the  people.  Take  this-    , 
or  nothing.      As  the  Constitution   now  stands,  he   could 
neither  give  it  his  support  or  vote  in  Virginia ;  and  he  could 
not  sign  here  what  he  could  not  support  there.     With  the\. 
expedient   of  another  convention,   as  proposed,   he  could 
sign."'     This  was  Colonel  Mason's  last   utterance   in  the    : 
Federal  Convention.     He  was  followed  by  Elbridge  Gerry,    . 
who  stated  briefly  his  objections  to  the  proposed  system. 
Then,  on  the  proposition  of  Edmund  Randolph  for  a  second 
convention,  all  the  States  voted  in  the  negative.     This  was 
on  Saturday,  the  15th  of  September.     On  Monday,  the  17th, 
the  engrossed  Constitution  was  read  and  signed  by  all  the 
members  present  except  George  Mason,  Edmund  Randolph,  | 
/        and  Elbridge  Gerry. 

George  Mason  told  Jefferson  that  the  Constitution  as 
agreed  to  only  a  fortnight  before  met  with  his  approval.  It 
was,  however,  somewhat  earlier  that  the  changes  were  made 
which  so  altered  its  character  as  to  render  it,  in  Mason's 
opinion,  no  longer  a  safe  charter  of  government.  Luther 
Martin,  in  answering  an  assertion  of  one  of  his  political 
adversaries,  in  1788,  that  he  had  cautioned  certain  members 
of  the  Convention  to  be  on  their  guard  against  the  wiles  of 
Elbridge  Gerry,  **  for  that  he  and  Mason  held  private  meet- 

'  IHd.,  p.  1594. 


PRIVATE  MEETINGS  OF  STATE S^RIGHTS  MEMBERS.     1 77 

ings,  where  the  plans  were  concerted  to  aggrandize,  at  the 
expense  of  the  small  States,  *  Old  Massachusetts  and  the 
Ancient  Dominion,*  "  gives  an  account  of  the  efforts  of  the 
States-rights  party  to  restore  the  Constitution  to  the  form_ 
first  "  agreed  to."  /"  Some  time  in  the  month  of  August," 
he  says,  "  a  number  of  members  who  considered  the  system, 
as  then  under  consideration,  and  likely  to  be  adopted,  ex- 
tremely exceptionable,  and  of  a  tendency  to  destroy  the 
rights  and  liberties  of  the  United  States,  thought  it  advisa^ 
ble  to  meet  together  in  the  evenings,  in  order  to  have  a  com- 
munication of  sentiments,  and  to  concert  a  plan  of  conven- 
tional opposition  to,  and  amendment  of,  that  system,  so  as, 
if  possible,  to  render  it  less  dangerous.  Mr.  Gerry  was  the 
first  who  proposed  this  measure  to  me,  and  that  before  any 
meeting  had  taken  place,  and  wished  we  might  assemble  at 
my  lodgings ;  but  not  having  a  room  convenient  we  fixed 
upon  another  place.  There  Mr.  Gerry  and  Mr.  Mason  did 
hold  meetings.;  but  with  them  also  met  the  delegates  from 
•  New  Jersey  and  Connecticut,  a  part  of  the  delegation  from 
Delaware,  an  honorable  member  from  South  Carolina,  [Charles 
Pinckney  ?]  one  other  from  Georgia  and  myself.  Those  were 
the  only  *  private  meetings  *  that  ever  I  knew  or  heard  to  be 
held  by  Mr.  Gerry  and  Mr.  Mason — meetings  at  which  I  my- 
self attended  until  I  left  the  Convention — and  of  which  the 
sole  object  was  not  to  aggrandize  \}x^  great  at  the  expense  of 
the  smally  but  to  protect  and  preserve,  if  possible,  the  ex- 
istence and  essential  rights  of  all  the  States,  and  the  liberty , 
and  freedom  of  their  citizens."  * 

Hoping  against  hope  and  vigilant  to  the  end,  Colonel 
Mason  is  to  be  seen  at  his  post  in  the  last  weeks  of  the  Con- 
vention, striving  to  bring  about  alterations  of  more  or  less 
signficance  and  value.  The  vote  of  the  29th  of  August  had 
been  a  great  disappointment  to  him,  but  he  still  sought  to 
reverse  its  decision.  Among  his  manuscripts  is  to  be  found 
a  paper  showing  the  points  of  the  Constitution  to  which  he 

*  Maryland  Journal  and  Baltimore  Advtrtiitr^  March  18,  1788.     Letter  of 

Luther  Martin. 

Vol.  11—12 


178      UFB  AND   CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

took  exception  and  the  amendments  designed  by  him  at  this 
time.  Opposite  most  of  these  notes,  of  which  there  are 
twenty  in  all,  George  Mason  has  marked  in  the  margin 
"  agreed  "  or  "  refused/'  as  the  case  might  be.  One  of  them, 
endorsed  as  "  not  proposed,"  is  as  follows : 

*'  Sect.  2 — Art.  4.  The  citizens  of  one  State  having  an  estate 
in  another,  have  not  secured  to  them  the  right  of  removing  their 
property  as  in  the  Fourth  Article  of  the  Confederation.  Amend 
by  adding  the  following  clause :  And  every  citizen  having  an 
estate  in  two  or  more  States  shall  have  a  right  to  remove  his 
property  from  one  State  to  another." 

George  Mason's  reference  to  Article  V  fixes  the  date  of  the 
manuscript  to  some  extent.     He  says  : 

''  By  this  article  Congress  only  have  the  power  of  proposing 
amendments  at  any  future  time  to  this  Constitution,  and  should 
it  prove  ever  so  oppressive  the  whole  people  of  America  can't 
make,  or  even  propose  alterations  to  it ;  a  doctrine  utterly  sub- 
versive of  the  fundamental  principles  of  the  rights  and  liberties 
of  the  people." 

\  • 

Here  Colonel  Mason's  watchfulness  was  of  great  service 
in  detecting  and  bringing  to  light  a  device  of  Gouverneur 
Morris  to  prevent  the  States  from  having  the  power  to  pro- 
pose amendments.  George  Mason  gave  an  account  of  the 
circumstance  to  Jefferson,  who  thus  reports  it : 

"  One  morning  Gouverneur  Morris  moved  an  instrument  for 
certain  alterations  (not  one  half  the  members  yet  come  in).  In 
a  hurry  and  without  understanding,  it  was  agreed  to.  The  com- 
mittee [on  style]  reported  so  that  Congress  should  have  the 
exclusive  power  of  proposing  amendments.  George  Mason 
observed  it  on  the  report  and  opposed  it.  King  denied  the  con- 
struction. Mason  demonstrated  it,  and  asked  the  committee  by 
what  authority  they  had  varied  what  had  been  agreed.  Gouv- 
erneur Morris  then  imprudently  got  up  and  said,  By  authority  of 
the  Convention,  and  produced  the  blind  instruction  before  men- 


FRUSTRATION  OF  AN  ADVERSARY'S  SCHEME.      179 

tioned,  which  was  unknown  by  one  half  the  house,  and  not  till 
then  understood  by  the  other.  They  then  restored  it  as  it 
originally  stood."  * 

Morris  was  not  scrupulous,  as  his  own  admissions  show, 
in  his  desire  to  secure  a  centralized  government.  He  tells 
how,  in  his  capacity  of  draftsman  for  the  committee  on  style, 
he  sought  by  the  wording  of  another  portion  of  the  Constitu- 
tion, the  article  on  the  judiciary,  to  give  it  a  more  decided  bias 
in  the  desired  direction.*  Mason  and  Morris  were  types  of  op- 
posing political  views,  and  it  is  noticeable  in  the  debates 
of  the  Convention  how  often  they  engaged  one  another  in 
combat.  They  were  strongly  contrasted  in  character  also, 
which  made  the  antagonism  more  complete. 

George  Mason's  last  and  cardinal  amendment  is  given  in 
this  manuscript  as  originally  proposed  by  him : 

"  No  law  in  the  nature  of  a  Navigation  Act  shall  be 
passed  without  the  assent  of  two  thirds  of  the  members 
present  in  each   House." 

In  another  hand,  the  qualifying  phrase  is  inserted  which 
it  was  believed  might  make  it  more  acceptable — "  before  the 
year  1808." '  Among  George  Mason's  manuscripts,  relating 
to  the  period  of  the  Federal  Convention,  is  a  draft  of  a  con- 
stitution in  the  handwriting  of  Edmund  Randolph.  It  is 
discussed  at  length  by  Mr.  Moncure  D.  Conway  in  his 
biography  of  Randolph.*  This  paper,  full  of  details,  and 
with  marginal  notes  by  John  Rutledge,  was  evidently  used 
in  one  of  the  Convention  committees.  Other  manuscripts, 
chips  preserved  by  George  Mason  from  the  Convention 
workshop,  are  a  fragment  of  a  speech  of  his,  and  some 
suggestions,  in  an  unknown  hand,  on  the  subject  of  the 
judiciary.* 

'  '*  Jefferson's  Works.'*  vol.  ix.,  Anas,  p.  119. 

*  **  Life  and  Writings  of  Gouverneur  Morris,"  Sparks,  vol.  iii.,  p.  323, 
'  Appendix  ii. 

*  "  Life  of  Edmund  Randolph."  p.  73. 

*  Appendix  ii. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

lAST   VEAR   IN  THE   VIRGINIA   ASSEMnLY. 
1787-1788. 

Washington  notes  in  his  journal  September  17,  1787  ; 

"  Met  in  Convention,  when  the  Constitution  received  the  unani- 
mous assent  of  eleven  States,  and  of  Col.  Hamilton  from  New 
York,  the  only  delegate  from  thence  in  Convention,  and  was  sub- 
scribed to  by  every  member  present,  except  Governor  Randolph 
and  Colonel  Mason  from  Virginia,  and  Mr.  Gerry  from  Massa- 
chusetts. The  business  being  thus  closed  the  members  adjourned 
to  the  City  Tavern,  dined  together,  and  took  a  cordial  leave  of 
each  other.  After  which  I  returned  to  my  lodgings,  did  some 
business  with  and  received  the  papers  from  the  Secretary  of  the 
Convention,  and  retired  to  meditate  on  the  momentous  work, 
which  had  been  executed,  after  not  less  than  five,  for  a  large  part 
of  the  time  six,  and  sometimes  seven  hours'  sitting  every  day 
(except  Sundays  and  the  ten  days'  adjournment  to  give  a  commit- 
tee an  opportunity  and  time  to  arrange  the  business)  for  more 
than  four  months." ' 

We  have  no  record  of  George  Mason's  last  day  in  the 
Convention.  But  his  meditations  upon  the  "  momentous 
work"  there  executed  were,  doubtless,  of  a  very  dtfterent 
nature  from  Washington's.  He  went  home,  perhaps,  in 
company  with  his  neighbor  of  "  Mount  Vernon,"  and  dis- 
cussed by  the  way  the  Constitution  and  its  shortcomings. 
Alexandria  is  said  to  have  been  strongly  in  favor  of  the  new 
'  "WrilingioF  Washington,"  Sparks,  vol.  ix.  (Appendix),  p.  541. 


EXPEDIENT  SUGGESTED  BY  EDMUND  RANDOLPH.  l8l 


government.  And  such  was  certainly  the  bias  of  a  Phila- 
delphia paper,  which  published  in  its  editorial  columns  a 
remarkable  story  purporting  to  be  a  veracious  account  of 
George  Mason's  reception  in  Alexandria  on  his  return  from 
the  Convention.  "We  hear  from  Alexandria,"  says  this 
Baron  Munchausen,  "  that  on  the  arrival  of  Mr.  Mason  (one 
of  the  delegates  in  Convention)  at  Alexandria,  he  was  waited 
on  by  the  Mayor  and  Corporation  of  that  town,  who  told 
him,  they  were  not  come  to  return  him  their  thanks  for  his 
conduct  in  refusing  to  sign  the  Federal  Constitution,  but  to 
express  their  abhorrence  to  it,  and  to  advise  him  to  withdraw 
from  that  town  within  an  hour,  for  they  could  not  answer 
for  his  personal  safety  from  an  enraged  populace  should  he 
exceed  that  time."  *  George  Mason  was  too  much  respected 
by  the  mayor  and  corporation  of  Alexandria  to  have  received 
from  them  any  such  treatment  as  is  here  described,  even  had 
the  town  been  so  foolish  as  to  resent  the  action  of  their  rep- 
resentative, which  is  by  no  means  proved.  And  as  neither 
Washington  nor  George  Mason  refer  to  any  such  incident, 
in  their  letters,  it  may  well  be  dismissed  as  completely  ficti- 
tious. Edmund  Randolph,  too,  would  most  likely  have 
reported  it  to  Madison,  if  his  "  dissenting  colleague  "  had 
met  with  such  an  experience,  when  he  wrote  from  Bowling 
Green,  September  30th : 

'*  In  Alexandria  the  inhabitants  are  enthusiastic  [/.  e,  in  favor 
of  the  Constitution],  and  instructions  to  force  my  dissenting  col- 
league to  assent  to  a  convention  are  on  the  anvil.  I  wrote  to 
him  yesterday  suggesting  to  him  this  expedient :  to  urge  the 
calling  of  a  convention  as  the  first  act  of  the  Assembly  :  if  they 
should  wish  amendments  let  them  be  stated  and  forwarded  to  the 
States.  Before  the  meeting  of  the  convention  an  answer  may  be 
obtained.  If  the  proposed  amendments  be  rejected,  let  the  con- 
stitution immediately  operate  :  if  approved  by  nine  States,  let  the 
assent  of  our  convention  be  given  under  the  exceptions  of  the 
points  amended.  This  will,  I  believe,  blunt  the  opposition,  which 
will  be  formidable,  if  they  must  take  altogether  or  reject." " 

'  The  Pennsylvania  Journal^  October  17,  1787. 

*  '*  Life  of  Edmund  Randolph,"  M.  D.  Conway,  p.  95. 


1 82      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

This  letter  of  Edmund  Randolph  to  George  Mason  has 
been  lost,  and  it  is  not  very  clear,  partly  owing  to  the  fact 
that  the  sentence  is  not  punctuated  at  all  in  the  manuscript, 
what  the  Governor  meant,  as  he  described  his  scheme  to, 
Madison.  On  the  subject  of  calling  a  convention,  George  V 
Mason  did  not  need  any  prompting,  either  from  his  Alex- 
andria constituents  or  from  Edmund  Randolph.  He  had 
prepared,  in  the  last  days  of  the  Convention,  his  "  Objec- 
tions to  the  Constitution."  These  he  enclosed  to  Washing-'  ^ 
ton,  in  a  letter  dated  October  7th.     He  writes : 

''  I  take  the  liberty  to  enclose  to  you  my  objections,  to  the  new 
constitution  of  government,  which  a  little  moderation  and  tem- 
per at  the  latter  end  of  the  Convention  might  have  removed.  I, 
am,  however,  most  decidedly  of  opinion,  that  it  ought  to  be  sub- 
mitted to  the  people  for  that  special  purpose,  and  should  any 
attempt  be  made  to  prevent  the  calling  of  such  a  Convention  here, 
such  a  measure  shall  have  every  opposition  in  my  power  to  give 
it.  You  will  readily  observe  that  my  objections  are  not  numer- 
ous (the  greater  part  of  the  enclosed  paper  containing  reasonings 
upon  the  probable  effects  of  the  exceptionable  parts),  though  in 
my  mind  some  of  them  are  capital  ones." 

Colonel  Mason  in  his  letter  then  leaves  politics  for  agri- 
culture, and  tells  his  correspondent  of  the  failure  of  some  of 
his  crops,  and  that  Dr.  Williamson  and  Colonel  Davie,  of 
North  Carolina,  whom  he  had  met  at  the  Convention,  had 
shown  him  letters  mentioning  large  crops  of  corn  in  their 
State.  He  proposes  to  supply  himself  there,  and  will  write 
to  Dr.  Williamson  at  Edenton  for  this  purpose.  And  George 
Mason  offers  to  make  a  contract  for  Washington  also,  should 
the  latter  desire  it.* 

George  Mason  wrote  out  his  objections  to  the  Constitution 
before  leaving  the  Convention,  apparently,  as  they  are  found 
on  the  edition  of  the  Constitution  printed  for  the  benefit  of 
the  members,  and  given  to  them  September  13th.  This  was 
the  **  Report  "  of  the  "  Committee  on  Style  and  Arrange- 

*  Washington  MSS.,  State  Department. 


/ " 


MASON'S  ''OBJECTIONS  TO  THE  CONSTITUTION."     183 

ment."  George  Mason's  copy,*  which  is  among  the  few  that 
bave  been  preserved,  is  full  of  interlineations  and  marginal 
-notes,  having  been  used,  no  doubt,  in  Committee  of  the 
Whole.  The  "  Objections,"  as  they  appeared  afterwards  in 
pamphlet  form,  were  somewhat  expanded,  and  there  were 
changes  in  the  style  here  and  there.*  They  were  not  a  great 
many,  as  George  Mason  told  Washington,  but  they  covered 
-the  whole  ground,  and  were  dwelt  upon  fully  in  the  debates 
'of  the  Virginia  Convention  some  months  later.  In  the 
"  Address  of  the  Sixteen  Seceding  Members  of  the  Legisla- 
ture of  Pennsylvania,**  September  29th,*  as  Washington  wrote 
'Madison,  George  Mason*s  objections  are  detailed,  and  no 
doubt  he  was  in  communication  with  the  Antifederalists  of 
Pennsylvania  and  gave  them  the  benefit  of  his  views.  His 
objections  were  circulated  among  his  friends  in  manuscript 
before  they  appeared  in  print,  and  Madison  wrote  a  reply  to 
them  in  a  letter  to  Washington,  October  i8th.*  It  is  evident 
they  excited  a  great  deal  of  interest  and  no  little  alarm 
among  the  Federalists,  though  Madison  affected  to  think 
them  of  small  importance.  They  were  published  in  Rich- 
mond, "  Addressed  to  the  Citizens  of  Virginia,"  '  probably 
in  November  or  December,  1787,  and  it  is  said  they  were 
also  published  in  Boston,  '*  mutilated  of  that  which  pointed 
at  the  regulation  of  commerce.**  *  An  answer  to  them  ap- 
peared in  the  Massachusetts  Centinel  oi  the  i8th  of  Decem- 
ber, copied  from  the  Connecticut  Courant,  which  was  supposed 
to  have  been  written  by  Ellsworth,  or  Sherman,  or  some 
equally  able  champion  of  the  Constitution.^  The  most 
elaborate  reply  to  George  Mason's  "  Objections  **  was  that 
made  by  James  Iredell,  of  North  Carolina,  published  in  the 
biography  of  the  latter,  and  reprinted  among  the  pamphlets 

*  Owned  by  Mrs.  St.  George  Tucker  Campbell,  of  Philadelphia.  V4oy3  CKAPiM  UiO 
»  Appendix  ii.  £oiLLlAirv%S  OOi^Li 

*  American  Museum^  vol.  ii.,  p.  362. 

*  "  Writings  of  Washington,"  Sparks,  vol.  ix.,  App.  vi. 

^  "  Pamphlets  on  the  Constitution,"  Paul  L.  Ford,  p.  390. 

*  "  Writings  of  Washington,"  Sparks,  vol.  ix.,  p.  288. 

^  •*  The  Republic  of  Republics,"  p.  444,  P.  C.  Centz,  Appendix  A,  No.  i. 


1 84     UFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

collected  by  Mr.  Ford.  James  Wilson,  of  Pennsylvania,  was 
one  of  the  most  prominent  advocates  of  the  Constitution,  ■ 
in  its  unamended  shape,  and  his  pamphlet  in  its  defence  is 
considered  the  ablest  on  that  side  that  appeared  at  this 
period.  I  An  amusing  "  Recipe  for  an  anti-Federalist  essay,'* 
which  was  published  in  one  of  the  newspapers  of  the  day» 
brings  Wilson  and  Mason  together  as  typical  men  of  the  two, 
parties.  The  phrase  **  well-bom,"  alluded  to  as  a  shibboleth  ^ 
of  the  Federalists,  belonged  to  John  Adams,  and  will  be 
met  with  later  in  the  debates  of  the  Virginia  Convention  : 

"  Take  *  well-born '  nine  times  ;  *  aristocracy '  nine  times  ;  *  lib-  ^ 
erty  of  the  press '  thirteen  times  ;  *  liberty  of  conscience '  once  ; 
*  negro  slavery '  once  ;  *  trial  by  jury  '  seven  times  ;  *  great  men  * 
six  times  ; '  Mr.  Wilson '  forty  times  ;  and  lastly,  '  George  Mason's 
right  hand  in  a  cutting-box  '  nineteen  times.  Put  all  together^ 
boil  or  roast  or  fry,  and  dish  at  pleasure.  After  being  once 
used  the  remains  of  the  same  dish  may  be  served  a  dozen  times 
adlibitumr' 

Edmund  Randolph  published  a  letter  embodying  his  objec- 
tions to  the  Constitution,  and  Richard  Henry  Lee  wrote 
very  ably  in  advocacy  of  amendments  to  the  charter  of  gov- 
ernment as  it  then  stood.  As  Mason  and  Randolph  had 
been  the  Virginia  Antifederalists  of  the  Convention,  so 
Richard  Henry  Lee  and  William  Grayson  were  leaders  of 
this  party  in  Congress.  The  following  letter  from  Richard 
Henry  Lee  to  George  Mason,  written  in  reply  to  one  from 
the  latter,  giving  an  account  of  the  last  days  of  the  Conven- 
tion, details  the  action  of  Lee  in  Congress  in  his  efforts  to 
advance  the  cause  which  he  had  at  heart.  Unfortunately, 
all  the  letters  of  Mason  to  Lee  written  at  this  period  have 
been  lost.  Tradition  says  that  the  wife  of  Ludwell  Lee,  son 
of  R.  H.  Lee,  converted  many  of  these  letters  into  covers 
for  her  preserve-jars,  and  so  like  similar  treasures  among  the 
Bland  Papers,  which  served  to  line  baskets  of  eggs,  they 
perished  ignobly. 

*  Review  in  Th€  Nation ^  January  17,  1889. 


RICHARD  HENRY  LEE   TO  GEORGE  MASON.  18$ 



New  York,  October  ist,  1787. 
Dear  Sir  : 

I  have  waited  until  now  to  answer  your  favor  of  September 
•  loth  from  Philadelphia,  that  I  might  inform  you  how  the  Con- 
.  vention  plan  of  government  was  entertained  by  Congress.  Your 
,  \  prediction  of  what  would  happen  in  Congress  was  exactly  veri- 
-.fied.  It  was  with  us,  as  with  you,  this  or  nothing;  and  this 
urged  with  a  most  extreme  intemperance.  The  greatness  of  the 
powers  given,  and  the  multitude  to  be  created  produces  a  coali- 
tion of  monarchy  men,  military  men,  aristocrats  and  drones, 
whose  noise,  impudence  and  zeal  exceeds  all  belief.  Whilst  the 
commercial  plunder  of  the  South  stimulates  the  rapacious  trader. 
In  this  state  of  things  the  patriot  voice  is  raised  in  vain  for  such 
changes  and  securities  as  reason  and  experience  prove  to  be  ^ 
necessary  against  the  encroachments  of  power  upon  the  indis- 
pensable rights  of  human  nature.  Upon  due  consideration  oif 
the  Constitution  under  which  we  now  act,  some  of  us  were 
clearly  of  opinion  that  the  Thirteenth  Article  of  the  Confedera-  / 
tion  precluded  us  from  giving  an  opinion  concerning  a  plan  sub- 
versive of  the  present  system,  and  eventually  forming  a  new 
Confederacy  of  nine  instead  of  thirteen  States.  The  contrary 
doctrine  was  asserted  with  great  violence  in  expectation  of  the 
strong  majority  with  which  they  might  send  it  forward  under 
terms  of  much  approbation.  Having  procured  an  opinion  that 
Congress  was  qualified  to  consider,  to  amend,  to  approve  or  dis- 
approve, the  next  game  was  to  determine  that  though  a  right  to 
amend  existed,  it  would  be  highly  inexpedient  to  exercise  that 
right,  but  merely  to  transmit  it  with  respectful  marks  of  appro- 
bation. In  this  state  of  things  I  availed  myself  of  the  right  to 
amend,  and  moved  the  amendments,  a  copy  of  which  I  send 
herewith,  and  called  the  ayes  and  nays  to  fix  them  on  the  jour- 
nal. This  greatly  alarmed  the  majority  and  vexed  them  ex- 
tremely ;  for  the  plan  is  to  push  the  business  on  with  great 
dispatch,  and  with  as  little  opposition  as  possible,  that  it  may  be 
adopted  before  it  has  stood  the  test  of  reflection  and  due  exami- 
nation. They  found  it  most  eligible  at  last  to  transmit  it  merely, 
without  approving  or  disapproving,  provided  nothing  but  the 
transmission  should  appear  on  the  journal.  This  compromise 
was  settled  and  they  took  the  opportunity  of  inserting  the  word 


1 86      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

unanimously^  which  applied  only  to  simple  transmission,  hoping 
to  have  it  mistaken  for  an  unanimous  approbation  of  the  thing. 
It  states  that  Congress  having  received  the  Constitution  unani- 
mously transmit  it,  &c.  It  is  certain  that  no  approbation  was 
given.  This  Constitution  has  a  great  many  excellent  regulations 
in  it,  and  if  it  could  be  reasonably  amended  would  be  a  fine 
system.  As  it  is,  I  think  *t  is  past  doubt,  that  if  it  should  be  estab- 
lished, either  a  tyranny  will  result  from  it,  or  it  will  be  prevented 
by  a  civil  war.  I  am  clearly  of  opinion  with  you  that  it  should 
be  sent  back  with  amendments  reasonable,  and  assent  to  it 
withheld  until  such  amendments  are  admitted.  You  are  well 
acquainted  with  Mr.  Stone  and  others  of  influence  in  Maryland. 
I  think  it  will  be  a  great  point  to  get  Maryland  and  Virginia  to 
join  in  the  plan  of  amendments  and  return  it  with  them.  If  you 
are  in  correspondence  with  our  chancellor  Pendleton  it  will  be 
of  much  use  to  furnish  him  with  the  objections,  and  if  he  approves 
our  plan,  his  opinion  will  have  great  weight  with  our  Conven- 
tion ;  and  I  am  told  that  his  relation  Judge  Pendleton  of  South 
Carolina  has  decided  weight  in  that  State,  and  that  he  is  sensible 
and  independent.  How  important  will  it  be  then  to  procure  his 
union  with  our  plan,  which  might  probably  be  the  case  if  our 
chancellor  was  to  write  largely  and  pressingly  to  him  on  the  sub- 
ject, that  if  possible  it  may  be  amended  there  also.  It  is  certainly 
the  most  rash  and  violent  proceeding  in  the  world  to  cram  thus 
suddenly  into  men  a  business  of  such  infinite  moment  to  the 
happiness  of  millions.  One  of  your  letters  will  go  by  the  packet 
and  one  by  a  merchant  ship. 

My  compliments,  if  you  please,  to  your  lady  and  to  the  young 
ladies  and  gentlemen. 

I  am,  dear  sir,  affectionately  yours, 

Richard  Henry  Lee. 

Suppose  when  the  Assembly  recommended  a  Convention  to 
consider  this  new  Constitution  they  were  to  use  some  words  like 
these  :  It  is  earnestly  recommended  to  the  good  people  of  Virginia 
to  send  their  most  wise  and  honest  men  to  this  Convention  that  it 
may  undergo  the  most  intense  consideration  before  a  plan  shall 
be  without  amendments,  adopted  that  admits  of  abuses  being 
practised  by  which  the  best  interests  of  this  country  may  be 


ir- 


WASHINGTON'S   VIEW  OF  THE  SITUATION.        187 

injured  and  civil  liberty  greatly  endangered.     This  might  per- 
haps give  a  decided  tone  to  the  business. 

Please  to  send  my  son  Ludwell  a  copy  of  the  amendments 
proposed  by  me  to  the  new  Constitution  sent  herewith.* 

These  amendments  correspond  almost  entirely  with  the 
"  Objections  "  of  George  Mason.  The  chief  variation  is  in  the 
manner  of  composing  the  Executive  Council.  Washington 
wrote  to  Madison  on  the  loth  of  October,  soon  after  receiv- 
ing George  Mason's  letter  with  his  "  Objections  to  the 
Constitution  ** : 

'*  As  far  as  accounts  have  been  received  from  the  southern  and 
western  counties,  the  sentiment  with  respect  to  the  proceedings 
of  the  Convention  is  favorable.  Whether  the  knowledge  of  this 
or  a  conviction  of  the  impropriety  of  withholding  the  Constitu- 
tion from  the  State  conventions,  has  worked  most  in  the  breast  of 
Col.  Mason,  I  will  not  decide ;  but  the  fact  is,  he  has  declared 
unequivocally,  in  a  letter  to  me,  for  its  going  to  the  people.  Had 
his  sentiments,  however,  been  opposed  to  the  measure,  his  in- 
structions (for  the  delegates  of  his  county  are  so  instructed) 
would  compel  him  to  vote  for  it.  Yet  I  have  no  doubt,  that  his 
assent  will  be  accompanied  by  the  most  tremendous  apprehen- 
sions which  the  highest  coloring  can  give  to  his  objections.  To 
alarm  the  people  seems  to  be  the  groundwork  of  his  plan.  The  \ 
want  of  a  qualiRed  navigation  act  is  already  declared  to  be  a 
means  by  which  the  price  of  produce  in  the  Southern  States  will 
be  reduced  to  nothing,  and  will  become  a  monopoly  of  the  East- 
ern and  Northern  States.  To  enumerate  the  whole  of  his  objec- 
tions is  unnecessary,  because  they  are  detailed  in  the  address  of 
the  seceding  members  of  the  Assembly  of  Pennsylvania,  which, 
no  doubt,  you  have  seen." 

Comparing  George  Mason  and  Richard  Henry  Lee,  Wash- 
ington adds : 

"  The  political  tenets  of  Col.  M.  and  Colonel  R.  H.  L.  are 
always  in  unison.  It  may  be  asked  which  of  them  gives  the  tone  ? 
Without  hesitation  I  answer  the  latter  because  I  believe  the  latter 

*  Mason  Papers. 


1 88      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON, 

will  receive  it  from  no-one.  He  has,  I  am  informed,  rendered 
himself  obnoxious  in  Philadelphia  by  the  pains  he  took  to  dis- 
seminate his  objections  among  some  of  the  leaders  of  the  seceding 
members  of  the  legislature  of  that  State.  His  conduct  is  not  less 
reprobated  in  this  country.  How  it  will  be  relished  generally  is 
yet  to  be  learned  by  me."  * 

The  late  commander-in-chief  clearly  belongs  to  the  **  mili- 
tary men  **  of  whom  Richard  Henry  Lee  speaks  in  his  letter 
to  Mason.  He  advocated  a  strong  government,  and  could 
see  no  need  for  bills  of  rights.  He  was  not  in  a  temper  to 
appreciate  the  motives  of  the  opposition  leaders.  But  it  is 
difficult  to  see  why  he  should  think  it  necessary  to  take  from 
George  Mason  the  credit  of  originality,  on  a  subject  which 
had  been  so  thoroughly  canvassed  by  him  in  the  Federal 
Convention,  and  to  suppose  that  Lee  gave  the  "  tone  **  to 
his  "  political  tenets."  Two  independent  thinkers  may  be 
"  always  in  unison,"  it  has  been  often  seen,  upon  principles 
which  each  one  has  arrived  at  by  his  own  method.  So  the 
mere  fact  that  Mason's  "  Objections "  antedated  Lee's 
"  Amendments  "  would  not  be  an  argument  against  Lee's 
originality,  though  his  paper  closely  resembled  that  of  his 
friend.     Five  days  later  Washington  wrote  to  Henry  Knox : 

'^  It  is  highly  probable  that  the  refusal  of  our  Governor  and 
Colonel  Mason  to  subscribe  to  the  proceedings  of  the  Convention 
will  have  a  bad  effect  in  this  State  ;  for  as  you  well  observe,  they 
must  not  only  assign  reasons  for  the  justiRcation  of  their  own 
conduct,  but  'li  is  highly  probable  that  these  reasons  will  be 
clothed  in  most  terrific  array  for  the  purpose  of  alarming." ' 

The  Virginia  Assembly  met  on  the  1 5th  of  October.  It  was 
the  last  Assembly  under  the  old  freer  life  of  the  Confederation ; 
and  it  was  to  be  Colonel  Mason's  last  session  in  the  Virginia 
Legislature.  Besides  the  regular  business  of  the  Assembly, 
the  all-important  question  of  the  new  Federal  Constitution 
was  to  come  up,  incidentally,  in  the  recommendation  of  a 

*  Bancroft's  **  History  of  the  Constitution,"  vol.  ii.,  p.  443  (Appendix). 

•  "  Writings  of  Washington.'*  Sparks,  vol.  ix.,  p.  270. 


« 


APPREHENSIONS  OF  THE  FEDERAUSTS.  1 89 


convention.  Madison  wrote  from  Congress  to  Washingfton 
on  the  28th,  expressing  his  anxiety  as  to  the  attitude  on  this 
point  of  George  Mason  and  Patrick  Henry.  He  had  heard 
from  one  of  his  correspondents  in  the  Assembly  "  that  Colo- 
nel Mason  had  not  got  down,  and  it  appears  that  Mr.  Henry 
is  not  at  bottom  a  friend."  He  is  therefore  "  not  without 
fears  that  their  combined  influence  and  management  may  yet 
create  difficulties."  *  The  resolution  of  Congress  transmit- 
ting the  Constitution  to  the  several  State  legislatures  came 
under  consideration  on  the  19th,  when  Patrick  Henry  de- 
clared that  it  must  go  before  a  convention  of  the  people,  as 
the  Assembly  had  no  power  to  decide  the  matter.  George 
Mason  must  have  arrived  in  the  Assembly  by  the  23d,  as  on 
this  day  Edmund  Randolph  wrote  to  Madison  from  Rich- 
mond :  *'  Mr.  Mason  has  declared  in  Assembly  that  although 
he  is  for  amendments,  he  will  not  quit  the  Union  even  if 
they  should  not  be  made."  Then  follows  a  phrase  in  this 
letter  showing  that  there  had  been  some  display  of  feeling 
on  Mason's  part,  apparently,  against  Madison,  which  is  not 
to  be  wondered  at  under  the  circumstances.  The  indistinct 
manuscript  reads :  "  Colonel  Mason  has  said  nothing  good 
[sic]  and  you  may  rest  yourself  in  safety  in  my  hands,  for  I 
will  certainly  repel  the  smallest  insinuation."  *  If  Madison 
feared  the  influence  of  Mason,  it  might  well  be  that  Mason 
returned  the  compliment.  Already  the  Federalist  had  begun 
its  work,  in  which  Madison's  pen  was  to  be  so  potent. 
And  George  Mason  must  have  viewed  with  chagrin  a  publi- 
cation which  was  to  do  so  much  towards  establishing  political 
views  of  which  he  emphatically  disapproved.  However,  as 
will  be  seen  subsequently,  the  two  statesmen,  if  estranged 
for  a  short  period,  renewed  later  their  former  friendly 
relations. 

On  the  25th  of  October  the  House  debated  the  question 
of  calling  a  convention,  and  the  following  account  is  given 
of  the  proceedings  in  a  letter  from  Petersburg  to  a  Phila- 

*  **  Correspondence  of  the  American  Revolution,"  Sparks,  vol.  iv.,  p.  185. 
'  "  Life  of  Edmund  Randolph,"  M.  D.  Conway,  p.  97. 


190     LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON, 

delphia  newspaper,  dated  November  ist,  the  only  record 
that  has  been  preserved  of  the  debate,  it  would  seem.  The 
writer  says :  "  On  Thursday  last  the  House  of  Delegates  of 
this  State  took  under  consideration  the  resolution  of  Con- 
gress by  which  the  appointment  of  a  State  Convention  was 
recommended."  The  debate  was  opened  by  Francis  Corbin, 
who  "  spoke  with  approbation  of  the  new  plan  of  govern- 
ment." He  closed  his  speech  with  a  resolution  that  a 
convention  be  called  according  to  the  recommendation  of 
Congress.  Patrick  Henry  rose  to  oppose  the  resolution,  as 
it  then  stood. 

"  He  did  not  question  the  propriety  or  necessity  of  calling  a 
Convention.  No  man  was  more  truly  Federal  than  himself,  but 
he  conceived  that,  if  this  resolution  was  adopted,  the  Convention 
would  only  have  it  in  their  power  to  say  that  the  new  plan  should 
be  adapted^  or  rejected^  and  that  however  defective  it  might  appear 
to  them,  they  would  not  be  authorised  to  propose  amendments. 
There  were  errors  and  defects  in  the  Constitution,  and  he  there- 
fore proposed  the  addition  of  some  words  to  Mr.  Corbin's  reso- 
lutions by  which  the  power  of  proposing  amendments  might  be 
given." 

Mr.  Corbin  defended  his  resolution,  and  George  Nicholas 
seconded  his  defence. 

"  He  warmly  reprobated  Mr.  Henry's  amendment,  because  it 
would  give  the  impression  that  the  Virginia  Assembly  thought 
amendments  might  be  made  to  the  new  government,  whereas  he 
believed  there  was  a  decided  majority  in  its  favor.  At  the  same 
time  he  did  not  deny  the  right  of  the  Convention  to  propose 
amendments." 

The  writer  goes  on  to  say : 

'<  Mr.  Mason,  who  had  just  taken  his  seat  in  the  House,  rose 
to  second  Mr.  Henry's  motion.  He  told  the  Committee  that  he 
felt  somewhat  embarrassed  at  the  situation  in  which  he  then 
stood.  He  had  been  honored  with  a  seat  in  the  Federal  Con- 
vention, and  all  knew  that  he  had  refused  to  subscribe  to  their 
proceedings.     This  might  excite  some  surprise,  but  it  was  not 


DEBATE  IN   THE  HOUSE  OF  DELEGATES.  I9I 

necessary  at  that  hour,  he  said,  to  make  known  his  reasons  ;  at 
a  proper  season  they  should  be  communicated  to  his  countrymen. 
He  would,  however,  declare  that  no  man  was  more  completely 
federal  in  his  principles  than  he  was :  that  from  the  east  of 
New  Hampshire  to  the  south  of  Georgia,  there  was  not  a  man 
more  fully  convinced  of  the  necessity  of  establishing  some  general 
government :  that  he  regarded  our  perfect  union  as  the  rock  of 
our  political  salvation  :  but,  that  he  had  considered  the  new 
federal  government  according  to  that  measure  of  knowledge 
which  God  had  given  him — that  he  had  endeavored  to  make 
himself  master  of  the  important  subject ;  that  he  had  deeply  and 
maturely  weighed  every  article  of  the  new  Constitution  ;  and 
with  every  information  which  he  could  derive,  either  from  his 
own  reflection,  or  the  observations  of  others,  he  could  not  approve 
it.  He  said  :  *  I  thought  it  wrong,  Mr.  Chairman, — I  thought  it 
repugnant  to  our  highest  interests,  and  if  with  these  sentiments  I 
had  subscribed  to  it,  I  might  have  been  justly  regarded  as  a 
traitor  to  my  country.  I  would  have  lost  this  hand  before  it 
should  have  marked  my  name  to  the  new  government.' 


•  It 


John  Marshall  spoke  next: 

"  He  thought  Mr.  Corbin's  resolution  improper  for  the  reason 
given  by  Mr.  Henry.  He  thought  Mr.  Henry's  amendment 
improper  for  the  reasons  given  by  Mr.  Nicholas.  He  wished 
that  the  future  Convention  should  have  the  fullest  latitude  in 
their  deliberations,  etc.,  but  he  thought,  with  Mr.  Nicholas,  that 
the  people  should  have  no  reason  to  suppose  that  their  Legisla- 
ture disapproved  the  new  federal  government,  and  therefore  he 
proposed  this  resolution :  That  a  Convention  should  be  called, 
and  that  the  new  Constitution  should  be  laid  before  them  for  their 
free  and  ample  discussion." 

This  resolution  passed  without  opposition.  The  other 
speakers  in  the  debate  were  Prentis,  Bland,  Thruston,  and 
Benjamin  Harrison.  And  it  was  decided  that  the  conven- 
tion should  meet  in  May,  the  election  of  members  to  take 
place  in  March.' 

The  first  mention  of  George  Mason's  name  in  the  printed 

*  Pennsylvania  Packet^  November  10,  1787. 


192      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

journal  of  the  Assembly  occurs  on  the  26th  of  October,  the 
day  after  the  debate  just  given,  when  he  is  added  to  the 
Committees  on  Revenue  and  Trade.  Between  this  date  and 
the  8th  of  November  there  is  no  further  reference  to  him  in 
the  journal,  but  we  learn  from  other  sources  how  he  was 
employed.  On  Saturday,  the  3d  of  November,  he  ans^vered 
the  expectations  of  his  friends  by  giving  the  death-blow  to 
paper  currency.  In  a  letter  to  Washington,  written  a  few 
days  later,  he  tells  of  the  petitions  before  the  House  for  an 
emission  of  paper  money,  and  other  similar  expedients, 
against  which  he  argued,  maintaining  that  they  were  founded 
upon  fraud  and  knavery.  Though  he  called  upon  the  advo- 
cates of  these  measures  to  come  forward  and  explain  their 
motives,  not  one  of  them  was  bold  enough  to  enter  the  lists 
against  such  a  champion,  and  the  resolutions  which  he  had 
prepared  passed  unanimously. 

"  Resolved^  &'c,,  That  the  present  scarcity  of  circulating  money 
has  been,  in  a  great  measure,  caused  by  the  general  fear  and 
apprehension  of  an  emission  of  paper  currency  ;  inducing  monied 
men  to  lock  up  their  gold  and  silver,  or  remit  it  to  Europe,  and 
prefer  receiving  a  very  low  interest  for  it  there,  to  the  risk  of 
lending  or  letting  it  out  here  ;  That  money,  by  the  common 
consent  and  custom  of  commercial  nations,  is  and  ought  to  be 
considered  as  a  scale  or  standard  by  which  to  estimate  the  com- 
parative value  of  commodities ;  and  that  nothing  can  be  more 
improper  and  unjust  than  to  substitute  such  a  standard  as  would 
be  more  uncertain  and  variable  than  the  commodities  themselves. 
That  an  emission  of  paper  money  would  be  ruinous  to  trade  and 
commerce,  and  highly  injurious  to  the  good  people  of  this  Com- 
monwealth ;  and  that  by  weakening  their  confidence  in  the  laws 
and  government,  corrupting  their  manners  and  morals,  destroying 
public  and  private  credit  and  all  faith  between  man  and  man,  it 
would  increase  and  aggravate  the  very  evils  it  is  intended  to 
remedy  ;  That  the  making  paper  currency,  or  anything  but  gold 
and  silver  coin,  a  tender  in  discharge  of  debts  contracted  in 
money  is  contrary  to  every  principle  of  sound  policy  as  well  as 
justice."  * 

*  Journal  of  the  Assembly.      Virginia  Gatittc,  November  22,  1787. 


% 


VIRGINIA  AND   THE  MISSISSIPPI  NAVIGATION.      1 93 

In  the  first  resolution  an  amendment  was  made,  striking 
out  **  remit  to  Europe,  &c./'  and  inserting  "  preferring  the 
loss  of  interest."  George  Mason  enclosed  a  copy  of  these 
resolutions  in  his  letter  to  Washington.  And  he  tells  his 
correspondent  of  a  resolution  which' passed  on  the  third  also, 
prohibiting  the  importation  of  spirits  and  some  other  things, 
all  of  which  he  thought  impolitic.  Madison  ascribes  this 
resolution  to  Patrick  Henry.'  A  plan  was  before  the  House, 
Mason  writes,  for  "  a  three  years*  instalment  of  all  debts," 
which  he  thought  exceptionable,  but  as  he  had  no  hope  that 
the  opposition  against  it  would  be  effective  he  meant  to  try 
and  change  it  by  making  the  consent  of  the  creditor  neces- 
sary and  the  instalments  voluntary.  Colonel  Mason  also 
enclosed  Washington  the  "resolutions  upon  the  proposed 
Federal  government."  On  the  8th  of  November,  the 
House  in  committee  on  the  state  of  the  commonwealth 
came  to  the  following  resolution  : 

*'  That  the  delegates  of  this  Commonwealth  in  Congress  ought 
to  be  instructed  to  urge  that  honorable  body  to  allow  a  credit  to 
this  State  against  the  present  existing  requisitions  of  Congress 
for  the  ascertained  amount  of  the  claim  of  this  Commonwealth 
against  the  United  States  for  expenses  incurred  on  account  of 
the  territory  ceded  to  Congress  by  this  State."  • 

The  committee  of  ten  appointed  to  prepare  these  instruc- 
tions included  George  Mason,  Patrick  Henry,  and  James 
Monroe.  Four  days  later  other  important  resolutions  were 
passed  by  the  House.  The  question  of  the  free  navigation 
of  the  Mississippi  was  still  unsettled,  and  the  Assembly  now 
restated  Virginia  s  position  on  the  subject  in  these  resolu- 
tions : 

"  That  the  free  use  and  navigation  of  the  western  streams  and 
rivers  of  this  Commonwealth  and  of  the  waters  leading  to  the 
sea,  do  of  right  appertain  to  the  citizens  thereof,  and  ought  to  be 
considered  as  guaranteed  to  them  by  the  laws  of  God  and  nature 

*  *'  Writings  of  Madison,"  vol.  i.,  p.  366. 

•  Journal  of  the  Assembly. 

Vol.  II— 13 


194     ^^^^  ^^^   CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

as  well  as  compact ;  That  every  attempt  in  Congress  or  elsewhere 
to  barter  away  such  right  ought  to  be  considered  as  subversive 
of  justice,  good  faith  and  the  great  foundations  of  moral  recti- 
tude, and  particularly  destructive  of  the  principles  which  gave 
birth  to  the  late  Revolution  as  well  as  strongly  repugnant  to  all 
confidence  in  the  Federal  Government,  and  destructive  to  its 
peace,  safety,  happiness  and  duration  ;  That  a  committee  ought 
to  be  appointed  to  prepare  instructions  to  the  delegates  repre- 
senting this  State  in  Congress  to  the  foregoing  import,  and  to 
move  that  honorable  body  to  pass  an  act  acknowledging  the 
rights  of  this  State,  and  that  it  transcends  their  power  to  cede  or 
suspend  them  ;  and  desiring  the  said  delegates  to  lay  before  the 
General  Assembly  such  transactions  as  have  taken  place  respect- 
ing the  cession  of  the  western  navigation." ' 

Mason  and  Henry  were  appointed  on  the  committee  here 
recommended.  But  a  subject  was  presently  to  be  considered 
where  these  two  leaders  are  found  on  opposite  sides.  This 
was  the  controversy  respecting  the  immediate  payment  of 
British  debts.  Should  all  legal  obstacles  be  removed  in  the 
way  of  their  liquidation,  in  accordance  with  a  provision  in 
the  treaty  of  peace,  or  should  they  remain  on  the  statute 
books  until  Great  Britain  fulfilled  her  part  in  evacuating  the 
posts  on  the  western  frontier?  George  Mason  supported 
the  resolutions  for  repealing  the  former  legislation  in  this 
matter,  while  Patrick  Henry  opposed  them.  The  former 
was  ably  seconded  here  by  George  Nicholas.  The  contest 
lasted  three  days,  but  at  length  George  Mason  triumphed. 
He  gives  an  interesting  account  of  the  debate  in  a  letter  to 
Washington  of  the  27th  of  November.  The  journal  of  the 
Assembly  records  that  on  the  17th,  the  committee  of  the 
whole  House  resolved :  **  That  all  and  every  act  or  acts  of 
Assembly  now  in  force  in  this  Commonwealth  repugnant  to 
the  treaty  of  peace  between  the  United  States  and  the  King 
of  Great  Britain,  or  any  article  thereof,  ought  to  be  repealed  ; 
but  the  operation  of  this  law  shall  be  suspended  until  the 
executive  shall  be  informed  by  Congress  that   the   other 


PA  YMENT  OF  BRITISH  DEBTS.  I95 

States  in  the  Union  have  passed  similar  laws  of  repeal."  A 
motion  was  made  by  Patrick  Henry  to  strike  out  from  the 
word  **  repealed  "  to  the  end  of  the  sentence,  and  insert  "  but 
the  operation  of  such  repeal  ought  to  be  suspended  until 
the  treaty  of  peace  is  complied  with  on  the  part  of  Great 
Britain/*  This  amendment  passed  in  the  negative.  Another 
amendment  was  then  proposed,  to  insert  after  the  word 
"  repealed  **  "  and  that  an  act  ought  to  p^tss,  to  compel  the 
payment  of  all  debts  due  to  British  subjects,  in  such  time 
and  manner  as  shall  consist  with  the  exhausted  situation  of 
this  Commonwealth.*'  This  was  also  negatived,  and  the 
main  question  then  passed  in  the  affirmative.'  The  commit- 
tee of  ten  to  whom  the  resolution  was  then  referred,  to 
prepare  the  necessary  bill,  consisted  of  Francis  Corbin, 
George  Mason,  George  Nicholas,  and  others,  concluding 
with  Monroe  and  Marshall.  George  Mason  wrote  Washing- 
ton how  "  Mr.  C n,  with  the  vanity  so  natural  to  a 

young  man,'*  undertook  to  draw  up  the  bill  without  consult- 
ing his  colleagues,  and  did  his  work  so  injudiciously  that  it 
would  require  to  be  "  regenerated  *'  in  the  committee  before 
it  could  be  presented.  On  the  24th  a  bill  passed  the  House 
declaring  tobacco  receivable  in  payment  of  certain  taxes  for 
the  year  1787.  George  Mason  voted  against  it,  and  in  his 
letter  to  Washington  he  speaks  of  it  as  "  a  foolish  and  inju- 
dicious project.**  Colonel  Mason,  on  this  day,  was  added  to 
the  committee  **  to  amend  the  several  acts  making  provision 
for  the  poor.'*  On  the  26th  he  was  made  chairman  of  a 
committee  of  seven  who  were  to  bring  in  a  bill  explaining 
and  amending  "  the  act  for  preventing  fraudulent  gifts  of 
slaves."  The  following  day,  leave  was  given  to  bring  in  a 
bill  "  to  remedy  abuses  in  certain  cases,  and  for  the  relief  of 
debtors,**  and  George  Mason  was  one  of  a  committee  of  six 
appointed  to  prepare  it."  In  his  letter  to  Washington  of 
this  date.  Colonel  Mason  says  :  **  Little  progress  has  yet  been 
made  on  the  subject  of  revenue.  I  shall  use  my  best  endeav- 
ors to  prevent  the  receipt  of  public  securities  of  any  kind 

'  IHd,  « IHd. 


196     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

in  taxes.  ...  By  way  of  experiment,  and  to  show  the 
members  the  utility  of  such  a  plan,  we  have  this  day,  against 
a  strong  opposition,  ordered  about  ;^6,cxx>  now  in  the 
treasury  to  be  immediately  applied  to  that  purpose,"  [1.  ^., 
purchasing  the  securities  up  at  the  market-price].  On  the 
28th,  the  House  in  committee  of  the  whole  on  the  state  of 
the  commonwealth,  resolved :  "  That  the  executive  ought  to 
be  authorized  to  dispose  of  the  public  tobacco  now  in  the 
treasury,  in  such  manner  and  for  specie,  or  such  public 
securities,  whether  State  or  Continental,  as  may  seem  to 
them  best  for  the  public  interest."  And  George  Mason  was 
appointed  on  the  committee  to  prepare  the  necessary  bills. 

Two  days  later,  resolutions  passed  the  House,  making 
provision  **  for  ascertaining  the  privileges  and  defraying  the 
expenses  "  of  the  members  of  the  Convention,  which  was  to 
meet  the  first  Monday  in  the  following  June,  instead  of 
May  as  at  first  decided  on.  And  it  was  further  resolved, 
that  if  this  Convention  "should  deem  it  proper  to  send  " 
a  deputy  or  deputies  to  confer  with  the  Convention  or 
Conventions  of  any  other  State  or  States  in  the  Union,  the 
General  Assembly  will  make  provision  for  defraying  the 
expenses  thereof." '  Patrick  Henry  and  George  Mason 
were  placed  second  and  third  on  the  committee  appointed 
for  this  purpose.  This  last  resolution  was  considered  a 
triumph  for  the  Antifcderalists,  and  gave  the  other  party 
no  small  alarm.  Bushrod  Washington  wrote  an  account  of 
the  matter,  three  days  later,  December  3d,  to  his  anxious 
relative  at  "  Mount  Vernon."     He  says : 

"  I  am  sorry  to  inform  you,  that  the  Constitution  has  lost 
so  considerably  that  it  is  doubted  whether  it  has  any  longer 
a  majority  in  its  favor.  From  a  vote  which  took  place  the  other 
day,  this  would  appear  certain,  though  I  cannot  think  it  so 
decisive  as  its  enemies  consider  it.  It  marks,  however,  the 
inconsistency  of  some  of  its  opponents.  At  the  time  the  resolu- 
tions calling  a  Convention  were  entered  into,  Colonel  Mason 
sided  with  the  friends  of  the  Constitution,  and  opposed  any  hint 

» Ibid. 


PROVISION  FOR    THE   CONVENTION  IN  JUNE.       I97 


being  given,  expressive  of  the  sentiments  of  the  house  as  to 
amendments  [?].  But,  as  it  was  unfortunately  omitted  at  that 
time  to  make  provision  for  the  subsistence  of  the  Convention,  it 
became  necessary  to  pass  some  resolution  on  the  subject ;  when 
a  resolution  was  added,  providing  for  any  expense  which  may 
attend  an  attempt  to  make  amendments.  As  Colonel  Mason 
had,  on  the  former  occasion,  declared  that  it  would  be  improper 
to  make  any  discovery  of  the  sentiments  of  the  House  on  the 
subject,  and  that  we  had  no  right  to  suggest  anything  to  a 
body  paramount  to  us,  his  advocating  such  a  resolution  was 
matter  of  astonishment.  It  is  true,  he  declared,  it  was  not 
declaratory  of  our  opinion.  But  the  contrary  must  be  very 
obvious.  As  I  have  heard  many  declare  themselves  friends  to 
the  Constitution  since  the  vote,  I  do  not  consider  it  altogether 
decisive  of  the  opinion  of  the  House  with  regard  to  it.** ' 

There  was  some  debate  in  the  Assembly,  evidently,  on 
these  resolutions.  But  it  may  be  certain,  whatever  George 
Mason  said  on  the  30th  of  November  was  not  inconsistent 
with  the  opinions  so  emphatically  expressed  by  him  on  the 
25th  of  October. 

On  the  1st  of  December,  Colonel  Mason  and  several  other 
members  were  appointed  to  prepare  a  bill  "  to  supply  the 
defect  of  evidence  of  the  Royal  assent  to  certain  Acts  of 
Assembly  under  the  former  government."  And  on  this  day 
the  vexed  question  of  the  British  debts  was  again  before  the 
House,  and  two  amendments  were  made  to  the  bill.  The 
first  two  clauses,  including  the  preamble,  were  stricken  out 
and  the  following  was  inserted  : 

"  Whereas  it  is  stipulated  by  the  fourth  article  of  the  treaty  of 
peace  between  the  king  of  Great  Britain  and  the  United  States 
of  America  in  Congress  assembled,  that  creditors  on  either  side 
shall  meet  with  no  lawful  impediment  in  the  recovery  of  the  full 
value  in  sterling  money,  of  all  bona  fide  debts  heretofore  con- 
tracted. Be  it  therefore  enacted,  &c. — That  such  of  the  act 
or  acts  of  the  legislature  of  this  Commonwealth,  as  have  pre- 
vented, or  might  prevent,  the  recovery  of  debts  due  to  British 
'  "Writings  of  Washington,"  Sparks,  vol.  ix.,  p.  273. 


IQ8     UFE  and  correspondence  of  GEORGE  MASON. 

subjects,  according  to  the  true  intent  and  meaning  of  the  said 
treaty  of  peace,  shall  be  and  are  hereby  repealed." 

This  first  amendment  may  have  been  due  to  the  making 
over  in  the  committee  of  the  illy  drawn  instrument  as  it 
came  from  Mr.  Corbin's  hands.  But  the  second  amendment 
showed  Patrick  Henry's  influence,  and  in  fact  was  meant  to 
nullify  the  whole  bill.  The  proviso  that  the  operation  of 
the  law  shall  be  suspended  until  the  Governor  with  the 
advice  of  the  Council  shall,  by  his  proclamation  declare 
the  same  to  be  in  force ;  which  proclamation  he  is  hereby 
empowered  and  directed,  with  the  advice  aforesaid  to  issue 
on  receiving  official  information  from  Congress  that  the 
other  States  in  the  Union  have  passed  laws  enabling  British 
creditors  to  recover  their  debts  agreeably  to  the  terms  of 
the  treaty,  was  struck  out  and  in  its  place  was  inserted  : 

**  Provided  that  this  act  shall  be  suspended  until  the  Governor 
with  the  advice  of  the  Council  shall,  by  his  proclamation  notify 
to  this  State  that  Great  Britain  hath  delivered  up  to  the  United 
States  the  posts  therein  now  occupied  by  British  troops,  which 
posts  were  stipulated  by  treaty  to  be  given  up  to  Congress  imme- 
diately after  the  conclusion  of  peace  ;  and  is  also  taking  measures 
for  the  further  fulfilment  of  the  said  treaty,  by  delivering  up  the 
negroes  belonging  to  the  citizens  of  this  State  taken  away  con- 
trary to  the  seventh  article  of  the  treaty,  or  by  making  such 
compensation  for  them  as  shall  be  satisfactory  to  Congress."  * 

Patrick  Henry  "carried  his  point,"  as  Madison  wrote 
Jefferson." 

No  doubt  the  subject  was  warmly  debated  this  day  also 
between  Mason  and  Henry.  There  was  much  to  be  said  on 
both  sides,  and  that  side  advocated  by  Patrick  Henry  was 
the  one  most  likely  to  appeal  to  popular  favor.  An  attack 
was  made  on  the  church  glebes  at  this  time,  on  a  petition  of 
the  Presbyterians  praying  a  repeal  of  the  law  reserving  to 

'  Journal  of  the  Assembly. 

*  '*  Writings  of  Madison/'  vol.  i.,  p.  379. 


OTHER    WORK  IN   THE  ASSEMBLY.  1 99 

the  Episcopal  Church  the  church  buildings  and  glebes. 
George  Mason  was  not  prepared  to  go  the  length  of  depriv- 
ing the  Church  of  her  rightful  property,  and  he  voted 
against  the  resolution  to  sell  the  glebe  lands  in  the  parishes 
which  were  without  a  rector.  And  it  was  not  until  some 
years  after  Colonel  Mason's  death  that  the  spoliation  was 
effected.  On  the  6th  of  December  the  House  in  com- 
mittee of  the  whole,  considering  that  "  the  distresses  of  the 
people,  arising  from  a  variety  of  causes,  are  such,  that 
property  taken  in  execution  to  satisfy  debts  and  contracts, 
does  not  in  most  cases  sell  for  near  its  value,  thereby  in  the 
end  tending  to  the  ruin  both  of  debtor  and  creditor.  Re- 
solved &c.  That  some  act  of  the  legislature  ought  to  pass 
for  remedy  thereof ;  That  an  act  ought  to  pass  for  establish- 
ing district  courts,  and  for  reforming  the  county  courts." 
George  Mason,  Patrick  Henry,  and  George  Nicholas  were 
on  the  committee  of  sixteen,  who  were  to  prepare  a  bill  for 
these  purposes.*  A  resolve  which  Colonel  Mason  enclosed 
to  Washington  in  his  letter  of  November  27th  was  on  this 
subject  of  debts,  and  suggested  a  measure  for  the  accom- 
modation of  both  debtor  and  creditor.  A  few  days  later 
George  Mason  was  made  chairman  of  a  committee  to  amend 
two  acts  concerning  roads,  to  repair  some  and  open  others. 
These  roads  passed  through  Colonel  Mason's  own  neighbor- 
hood, so  it  was  a  matter  in  which  his  constituents  were 
specially  interested.  The  former  acts,  it  seems,  had  proved 
oppressive,  in  requiring  tolls  from  those  who  received  no 
benefit  by  the  turnpikes.  The  new  bill,  as  drawn  up  by 
George  Mason  remedied  this  injustice.  As  much  travelling 
in  those  days  was  done  by  private  conveyance,  the  subject 
of  tolls  was  an  important  one  to  the  country  gentlemen. 
The  report  of  the  treasurer's  account  was  referred  to  a  com- 
mittee of  which  Colonel  Mason  was  a  member.  And  on 
the  seventeenth  he  was  appointed  one  of  a  committee  of 
five  to  prepare  a  bill  "  concerning  debts  due  to  and  from 
citizens,  partners  with  British  subjects."     A  committee,  con- 

'  Journal  of  Ihe  Assembly. 


200      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

sisting  of  Nicholas,  Mason,  Cabell,  Monroe,  Corbin,  and 
Henry,  was  appointed  to  amend  the  acts  "  for  sequestering* 
British  property  and  enabling  those  indebted  to  Britisli 
subjects  to  pay  off  such  debts,  and  directing  the  proceed- 
ings in  suits  where  such  subjects  are  parties/* 

George  Mason  was  also  at  this  time  appointed  chainnan 
of  a  committee  of  six,  who  were  "  to  call  on  the  commission- 
ers now  engaged  in  liquidating  and  adjusting  the  expenses 
incurred  by  this  commonwealth,  for  the  northwestern  terri- 
tory ceded  to  Congress,  and  request  of  them  a  statement 
of  their  proceedings  therein  &c/'  *  On  the  22d  of  December 
George  Mason  was  appointed  chairman  of  a  committee  of 
six  to  prepare  a  bill  "  for  regulating  the  rights  of  cities^ 
towns  and  boroughs,  and  the  jurisdiction  of  corporation 
courts."     This  act  recites  : 

"Whereas  the  accumulating  different  and  distinct  offices  of 
power  and  authority  in  the  same  persons  has  a  tendency  to 
introduce  abuses,  and  to  create  an  improper  and  dangerous 
influence  in  a  few  individuals,  contrary  to  the  spirit  and  genius 
of  republican  government,  and  naturally  productive  of  oppres- 
sion and  subversive  of  liberty :  Be  it  therefore  enacted  by  the 
General  Assembly,  that  from  and  after  the  first  day  of  March 
next,  no  person  being  a  member  of  any  corporation  court,  court 
of  hustings  or  common  council  be  capable  of  acting  as  a  justice 
of  any  county  court.** 

And  in  conclusion  it  is  enacted  that, 

"  Whereas  it  is  contrary  to  the  true  principles  of  representa- 
tion, that  a  freehold  estate  in  any  particular  place  should  enable 
the  possessor  to  vote  in  the  elections  of  different  and  distinct 
places,  so  the  citizens  of  a  town  etc.,  sending  a  delegate  to  the 
Assembly  are  not  to  vote  in  the  county  elections."  " 

In  its  statesman-like  recurrence  to  fundamental  principles 
this  bill  is  easily  traceable  to  George  Mason's  pen.  A  week 
later.  Colonel  Mason  reported  a  bill  to  the  House,  "  pro- 

>  Ibid.  '  Hcning's  "  Statutes,"  vol.  xiu 


A    TRUSTEE  OF  RANDOLPH  ACADEMY.  20I 

viding  for  the  regular  payment  of  the  expenses  accruing 
from  the  trial  of  criminals  in  the  county  and  corporation 
courts.**  In  a  bill  providing  for  the  manumission  of  slaves, 
an  amendment  was  proposed  and  lost,  that  those  emanci- 
pated should  leave  the  State  within  twelve  months  or  be 
sold  at  public  auction.  Colonel  Mason  voted  for  the  amend- 
ment. On  the  last  day  of  December  an  act  was  passed  by 
the  Assembly  for  establishing  and  incorporating  the  Ratu 
dolph  Academy^  which  was  to  be  situated  in  the  western 
part  of  the  State,  in  one  of  the  following  counties:  Har- 
rison, Monongalia,  Randolph,  and  Ohio.  One  sixth  of 
the  fees  appropriated  to  the  support  of  William  and  Mary 
College  was  to  go  to  the  aid  of  this  new  institution.  Ed- 
mund Randolph,  Benjamin  Harrison,  Patrick  Henry,  George 
Mason,  and  George  Nicholas  were  among  the  trustees 
named,  and  they  were  to  hold  their  first  meeting  on  the 
second  Monday  in  the  following  May,  at  Morgantown  in 
Monongalia.'  It  is  not  probable  that  Colonel  Mason 
attended  this  meeting,  if  it  was  ever  held.  And  but  little 
is  heard  of  the  Academy  in  the  later  legislation  of  the 
Assembly.  Morgantown  and  its  neighborhood  were  still 
subject  to  raids  from  the  Indians  on  the  border,  and  pro- 
tected by  scouts  and  rangers  from  these  incursions,  and  the 
inhabitants  were  scarcely  in  a  situation  to  patronize  institu- 
tions of  learning.  George  Mason  and  three  other  members 
of  the  Assembly  were  appointed  on  the  3d  of  January  to 
bring  in  a  bill  **  to  authorize  the  executive  to  establish  fire 
companies.'*  Two  days  later  the  journal  of  the  House 
records  a  determined  effort  that  was  made,  when  it  came 
to  the  third  reading  of  the  bill  "  to  enable  citizens,  partners 
with  British  subjects  to  recover  their  proportion  of  debts," 
to  postpone  it  until  the  following  March.  The  vote  was 
equally  divided,  forty-three  on  each  side.  The  Speaker 
decided  the  question  by  a  vote  in  the  negative.  George 
Mason,  of  course,  voted  against  the  postponement. 
The  last  action  of  Colonel  Mason  in  the  Assembly  was  to 


202      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

give  in  his  report  from  the  committee  appointed  to  confer 
with  the  commissioners  engaged  in  liquidating  and  adjusting 
the  expenses  incurred  by  Virginia  for  the  northwestern  terri- 
tory ceded  to  Congress.  And  here,  it  seems,  it  was  necessary 
to  look  sharply  to  Virginia's  interests.  Congress  was  un- 
generously anxious  to  evade  Virginia's  just  claims.  There 
had  been  much  delay  in  getting  the  board  appointed,  the 
deed  of  cession  dating  from  the  spring  of  1784,  more  than 
three  years  previously.  There  were  three  commissioners 
forming  the  board  ;  one  was  appointed  by  the  United  States 
and  one  by  Virginia,  while  the  third  was  appointed  by  the 
two  other  commissioners.  George  Mason  enclosed  the 
resolve  of  the  House  of  Delegates  to  the  board,  in  a  letter 
requesting  to  know  at  what  time  they  could  have  their  pro- 
ceedings ready  for  inspection.  The  board  from  the  "  Office 
of  Illinois  Accounts,**  December  20th,  responded  that  they 
were  uncertain  whether  to  comply  or  not,  but  finally  decided 
that  it  was  proper  to  notice  the  request,  and  they  would 
submit  the  rough  entries  for  perusal  by  Monday  or  Tuesday 
next.  The  commissioner  appointed  by  Congress,  however, 
dissented  from  the  "  propriety  of  our  furnishing  the  informa- 
tion to  the  house  of  delegates  requested  by  their  note  &c., 
because  that  as  commissioners  appointed  to  settle  these  ac- 
counts between  the  State  of  Virginia  and  the  United  States  I 
think  that  we  cannot  prior  to  our  final  report,  consistent  with 
our  duty  to  each  party  communicate  any  official  information 
to  one  party  without  the  privity  or  consent  of  the  other." 
The  committee  then  say  that  being  refused  information  from 
the  above  commissioner  they  entered  upon  the  examination 
of  the  proceedings  of  the  board  as  laid  before  them  by  the 
other  two  gentlemen.  The  deed  ceding  the  territor}'  speci- 
fied "that  the  necessary  and  reasonable  expenses  incurred 
by  this  State  in  subduing  any  British  posts,  or  in  maintain- 
ing forts  and  garrisons  within  and  for  the  defence,  or  in 
acquiring  any  part  of  the  territory  so  ceded  or  relinquished, 
shall  be  fully  reimbursed  by  the  United  States."  But  the 
committee,  after  their  examination,  declare  that  they  "  find 


THE  COMMISSION  ON  ILLINOIS  ACCOUNTS,  203 

the  negotiation  now  in  such  a  train  that  Virginia,  unless  the 
General  Assembly  interpose,  will  be  denied  a  credit  for 
great  part  of  the  money  she  has  actually  and  bona  fide  paid, 
in  acquiring  and  maintaining  the  territory  so  ceded  and 
relinquished  to  the  United  States.  Questions  have  arisen 
concerning  the  true  spirit,  intent  and  meaning  of  the  words 
'  necessary  and  reasonable  expenses,*  as  used  in  the  act  of 
session  ;  on  the  depreciation  of  money  advanced  by  this 
State ;  on  bills  paid,  bona  fide  by  the  State  on  the  Illinois 
account,  and  on  the  expenses  of  establishing  and  maintain- 
ing forts  Jefferson  and  Nelson  &c.  Your  committee,"  as  the 
report  proceeds  to  state,  "  observing  the  progress  of  this 
business,  so  unfavorable  to  the  interest  of  the  State  and  so 
inconsistent  with  the  apparent  intentions  of  the  contracting 
parties,  requested  the  commissioners  to  reconsider  the  busi- 
ness and  to  do  Virginia  that  justice  to  which,  in  the  opinion 
of  the  committee,  she  is  entitled.  But  the  commissioner  on 
the  part  of  Congress  and  the  third  commissioner  have  in- 
formed us  that  they  mean  to  proceed  unless  the  powers 
given  them  be  revoked  by  both  the  contracting  parties." 
Virginia  had  incurred  expenses  in  subduing  British  posts 
and  maintaining  forts,  etc.,  to  the  amount  of  more  than  two 
hundred  and  twenty  thousand  pounds.  And  yet  if  the 
accounts  were  settled  as  proposed  by  the  commission,  this 
would  be  "  reduced  to  a  pittance  not  worth  acceptance." 
The  General  Assembly  protested  against  these  proceedings 
of  the  commissioners,  and  the  Virginia  delegates  in  Con- 
gress were  instructed  to  assure  that  body  that  the  General 
Assembly  "  animated  by  the  same  spirit  which  governed 
them  in  the  cession  of  such  a  vast  territory  to  the  Union, 
will  be  satisfied  with  the  reimbursement  of  such  sums  which 
she  [Virginia]  hath  actually  expended  in  acquiring,  main- 
taining and  defending  said  territory  to  be  paid  in  reasonable 
instalments." '  These  resolutions  were  carried  to  the 
Senate  by  Colonel  Mason.  Instrumental  as  he  had  been  in 
urging  upon  his  State  to  make  this  cession,  in  the  interest  of 

'  Journal  of  Ihe  Assembly. 


204      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON, 

harmony  and  union,  to  the  general  government,  George 
Mason  was  watchful  of  his  "country's"  rights,  and  he  now 
sought,  as  his  final  work  in  her  legislative  halls,  to  secure  to 
Virginia  the  modest  and  equitable  terms  named  in  her  deed 
of  gift. 

The  following  letters  from  George  Mason  to  General 
Washington  afford  an  interesting  view  of  the  proceedings  of 
the  Assembly  up  to  the  latter  part  of  November. 

Richmond,  November  6,  1787. 
Dear  Sir  : 

On  Saturday  last,  in  a  committee  of  the  whole  house  upon  the 
state  of  the  commonwealth,  to  whom  were  referred  sundry  peti- 
tions, some  praying  for  an  emission  of  paper  money,  and  others 
for  making  property  at  an  appraised  value,  a  tender  in  the  dis- 
charge of  debts,  I  moved  and  carried  the  resolutions  of  which  I 
inclose  a  copy.  During  the  discussion  of  the  subject,  after  treat- 
ing the  petitions  as  founded  upon  fraud  and  knavery,  I  called 
upon  any  of  the  members  of  the  House,  who  were  advocates  for 
such  measures,  if  any  there  were,  to  come  boldly  forward,  and 
explain  their  real  motives.  But  they  declined  entering  into  the 
debate,  and  the  resolutions  passed  unanimously.  I  hope  they 
have  given  this  iniquitous  measure  a  mortal  stab,  and  that  we 
shall  not  again  be  troubled  with  it. 

A  resolution  this  day  passed  for  an  absolute  prohibition  of  all 
imported  spirits,  with  some  others,  in  my  opinion,  almost  equally 
impolitic,  and  calculated  to  subject  the  eastern  part  of  the  State 
to  the  arbitrary  impositions  of  the  western.  The  prohibition  of 
the  single  article  of  rum,  would  cut  off  a  net  revenue  of  eleven 
thousands  pounds  per  annum.  When  the  bill  is  brought  in,  I 
think  they  will  find  such  insuperable  difficulties  in  the  mode  of 
carrying  into  execution,  as  will  oblige  them  to  abandon  the  project. 

I  take  the  liberty  of  inclosing  a  copy  of  the  resolutions  upon 
the  proposed  Federal  Government ;  by  which  it  will  appear 
that  the  Assembly  have  given  time  for  full  examination  and  dis- 
cussion of  the  subject,  and  have  avoided  giving  any  opinion  of 
their  own  upon  the  subject.  I  beg  to  be  presented  to  your  lady 
and  family,  and  am,  with  greatest  respect  and  regard, 

George  Mason. 


LETTERS  TO  GEORGE    WASHINGTON.  20S 

P.  S.  A  plan  is  before  the  House  for  a  three  years'  instalment 
of  all  debts.  Though,  in  my  opinion,  very  exceptionable,  it  is 
better  than  the  plans  of  that  kind  heretofore  proposed,  and  I  be- 
lieve will  be  adopted,  in  spite  of  every  opposition  that  can  be 
made  to  it.  I  shall,  therefore,  instead  of  pointing  the  little  oppo- 
sition I  can  make  against  the  whole,  endeavour  to  change  the 
plan,  by  making  the  consent  of  the  creditor  necessary,  and  the 
instalments  voluntary,  and,  in  such  cases,  giving  the  force  of 
judgments  to  the  instalment  bonds.' 

Richmond,  November  27,  1787. 
Dear  Sir  : 

I  this  morning  received  your  favor  of  the  fifteenth,  and  shall 
do  myself  the  honor  of  communicating  such  of  our  proceedings 
as  are  important ;  though  very  little  business,  of  that  kind,  has 
yet  been  completed.  The  Instalment  Plan,  after  being  presented 
to  the  committee  of  the  whole  house  upon  the  state  of  the  com- 
monwealth, and  some  hours'  debate  upon  the  subject,  has  been 
postponed  from  time  to  time.  From  the  best  information  I  can 
collect,  I  fear  there  is  a  majority  for  it ;  I  shall  therefore,  when- 
ever the  committee  proceed  upon  the  consideration,  endeavor  to 
substitute  the  Resolve,  of  which  I  enclose  a  copy,  and  upon 
which  I  wish  to  be  favored  with  your  sentiments. 

The  performance  of  the  treaty  with  respect  to  British  debts, 
has  taken  up  three  days  of  warm  debate  ;  Mr.  Henry,  General 
Lawson  and  Meriwether  Smith  on  one  side,  and  Col.  George 
Nicholas  (who  is  improved  into  a  very  useful  member)  and  my- 
self  on  the  other.  The  yeas  and  nays  were  demanded  upon  these 
questions  on  this  subject ;  first  upon  an  amendment  proposed  by 
Mr.  Henry  for  suspending  the  operation  until  the  treaty  should 
be  fully  performed  on  the  part  of  Great  Britain,  which  was 
rejected  by  a  majority  of  thirty-three  ;  secondly  upon  an  amend- 
ment proposed  by  Mr.  Ronald,  tantamount  to  an  instalment  of 
British  debts.  Knowing  that  instalments  were  calculated  to 
please  a  strong  party,  we  avoided  going  into  the  subject  at  large, 
and  confined  ourselves  to  the  impropriety  of  installing  British 
debts,  before  we  could  know  the  sense  of  the  legislature  upon  a 
general  instalment  of  all  debts  ;  as  any  discrimination  would  be 

'  "  Correspondence  of  the  American  Revolution,"  Sparks,  vol.  iv.,  p.  190. 


206      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON, 

a  palpable  infraction  of  the  treaty.  The  amendment  was  rejected 
by  a  majority  of  twenty-two  ;  the  main  question  was  then  put 
upon  the  resolve  for  repealing  all  laws  which  prevented  the 
recovery  of  British  debts,  with  a  clause  suspending  the  operation 
of  the  repeal  until  other  States  shall  also  pass  laws  to  enable 
British  subjects  to  recover  debts,  and  carried  by  a  majority  of 
forty.  A  bill  has  been  brought  in  in  consequence  of  the  said 
Resolve,  once  read  and  committed  to  a  committee  of  the  whole 
house  on  Friday  next.  Some  of  the  most  respectable  characters 
in  the  house  were  nominated  a  committee  to  prepare  the  bill  ; 

but  Mr.  C n  with  the  vanity  so  natural  to  a  young  man,  took 

upon  himself  to  draw  without  the  other  gentlemen  having  time 
to  consider  it,  and  has  drawn  it  so  very  injudiciously,  that  in  its 
present  shape,  it  would  infallibly  be  thrown  out  on  the  third 
reading.  However'  we  will  take  care  to  regenerate  it  in  the  com- 
mittee, and  I  make  no  doubt  of  its  passing  the  House  of  Dele- 
gates ;  there  will  be  a  strong  but  I  trust  a  fruitless  opposition  in 
the  senate.  As  soon  as  the  Treaty  Bill  is  secured  we  will  bring 
forward  the  Sequestration  business  ;  ^275,000  paper  currency 
of  the  average  value  of  about  14^/.  in  the  pound  having  been  paid 
into  the  treasury,  in  discharge  of  British  debts.  In  the  discussion 
of  this  subject,  I  expect  we  shall  see  some  long  faces. 

A  bill  for  receiving  tobacco  in  discharge  of  taxes  will  certainly 
pass  ;  it  is  in  my  opinion  a  foolish  and  injurious  project ;  as  such 
it  was  opposed,  but  to  no  purpose.  After  finding  their  strength, 
the  first  step  was  to  raise  the  last  year's  price  of  the  James  river 
tobacco  ;  we  had  then  nothing  left  but  to  endeavor  to  bring  up 
the  price  of  our  tobacco  in  proportion,  in  which  we,  with  some 
difficulty  succeeded,  and  got  our  tobacco  fixed  at  281.,  the  James 
river  tobacco  having  been  previously  settled  at  30J. 

Little  progress  has  yet  been  made  on  the  subject  of  revenue. 
I  shall  use  my  best  endeavors  to  prevent  the  receipt  of  public 
securities  of  any  kind  in  taxes  (as  the  only  effectual  means  of 
digging  up  speculation  by  the  roots)  and  appropriating  a  good 
fund  for  purchasing  them  up  at  the  market  price.  By  way  of 
experiment  and  to  show  the  members  the  utility  of  such  a  plan, 
we  have  this  day,  against  a  strong  opposition,  ordered  about 
;^6,ooo  now  in  the  treasury,  to  be  immediately  applied  to  that 
purpose  ;  which  I  hope  will  have  a  good  effect  upon  the  minds  of 


RESOLVE  ON  INSTALMENT  OF  DEBTS.  20/ 

the  members.  Yet  I  fear  the  interest  of  the  speculators  is  too 
powerful,  to  suffer  any  regular  extensive  system  upon  this  subject. 

The  bill  for  prohibiting  the  importation  of  spirits  stands  com- 
mitted to  a  committee  of  the  whole  house,  the  day  after  to-mor- 
row. Dr.  Stuart  tells  me  he  has  sent  you  one  of  the  printed  bills  ; 
you  will  find  it  fraught  with  such  absurdities  as  render  it  perfectly 
ridiculous,  yet  I  much  doubt  their  finding  them  out  so  as  to  amend 
the  bill  in  the  committee.  The  opposers  ought  to  let  them  go  on 
their  own  way,  and  reserve  their  attack  to  the  passage  on  the  third 
reading.  As  the  bill  now  stands,  according  to  the  strict  gram- 
matical construction,  spirits  are  subject  to  forfeiture  after  they 
have  been  swallowed,  and  the  informer  will  be  equally  subject  to 
the  penalty  with  the  persons  he  informs  against.  But  besides  the 
nonsense  of  the  bill,  the  very  principle  of  it  is  impolitic  as  it  will 
affect  our  commerce  and  revenue  ;  partial  and  unjust  in  sacrific- 
ing the  interest  of  one  part  of  the  community  to  the  other.  I  am 
afraid  this  scrawl  is  hardly  legible,  being  obliged  as  I  am  to  write 
with  bad  spectacles,  bad  light  and  bad  ink. 

I  beg  my  compliments  to  your  lady,  and  the  family  at  Mount 
Vernon,  and  am  with  the  most  sincere  respect  and  esteem. 

Dear  Sir, 
Your  affectionate  and  obedient  servant, 

G.  Mason. 

The  resolution  enclosed,  of  which  the  writer  asked  Wash- 
ington's opinion,  is  to  the  following  effect : 

"  Resolved,  that  it  is  the  opinion  of  this  committee,  in  order  to 
alleviate,  as  far  as  is  consistent  with  justice,  the  present  distresses 
of  the  people  of  this  commonwealth,  to  prevent  tedious  and  ruin- 
ous law-suits,  and  by  making  it  their  mutual  interest  to  encourage 
and  promote  voluntary  and  amicable  settlements  and  compositions 
between  debtors  and  creditors,  that  the  force  of  judgments  ought 
to  be  given  to  all  bonds  on  account  of  debts  contracted  or  due 
before  the        day  of  1787*  which  shall  be  entered  into 

within  one  year  after  the         day  of  by  the  mutual  con- 

sent of  debtor  and  creditor,  for  the  instalment  of  debts  by  annual 
payments,  for  any  number  of  years  not  exceeding  six  years  ;  and 
that  no  appeal  or  replevin  ought  to  be  allowed  upon  the  judg- 


208      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

ments  or  executions,  which  shall  be  obtained  in  virtue  of  such 
instalment  bonds,  when  they  respectively  become  due." ' 

Madison  in  a  letter  to  Jefferson  of  the  9th  of  December 
makes  the  following  allusions  to  the  Liquor  Bill  and  the  Port 
Bill  of  this  session.     He  says : 

"  I  find  Mr.  Henry  has  carried  a  Resolution  ior prohibiting  the 
importation  of  rum,  brandy  and  other  spirits,  and,  if  I  am  not 
misinformed,  all  manufactured  leather,  hats  and  sundry  other 
articles  are  included  in  i\it prohibition.  Enormous  duties  at  least, 
are  likely  to  take  place  on  the  last  and  many  other  articles.  A 
project  of  this  sort,  without  the  concurrence  of  the  other  States, 
is  little  short  of  madness.  .  .  .  Col.  Mason  made  a  regular 
and  powerful  attack  on  the  Port  Bill,  but  was  left  in  a  very  small 
majority.  I  found  at  the  last  session  that  that  regulation  was  not 
to  be  shaken,  though  it  certainly  owes  its  success  less  to  its 
principal  merits  than  to  collateral  and  casual  considerations."* 

The  port  bill  was  amended,  however,  probably  in  accord- 
ance with  Colonel  Mason's  views.  George  Mason  returned 
to  **  Gunston  Hall "  on  the  4th  of  February,  and  Washington 
wrote  to  Madison  the  following  day,  expressing  his  anxiety 
about  the  approaching  Convention,  the  election  of  delegates 
being  the  absorbing  topic  just  then.  He  says  :  "  Many  have 
asked  me  with  anxious  solicitude,  if  you  did  not  mean  to  get 
into  the  Convention,  conceiving  it  of  indispensable  import- 
ance. Colonel  Mason  who  returned  but  yesterday,  has  I  am 
told,  offered  himself  for  Stafford  county  and  his  friends  say 
he  can  be  elected,  not  only  in  that,  but  in  the  counties  of 
Prince  William  and  Fauquier  also."  *  Here  we  see  Madison 
and  Mason  were  instinctively  pitted  against  each  other  in 
Washington's  thoughts,  as  leaders  of  the  two  parties  in  the 
approaching  struggle.  George  Mason,  on  his  side  was 
anxious  to  secure  Richard  Henry  Lee  as  an  ally  in  the  Con- 
vention.      Arthur    Lee    who    probably  visited   "  Gunston 

•  Washington  MSS.,  State  Department. 

•  **  Writings  of  Madison,"  vol.  i.,  p.  364. 

•  *'  Writings  of  Washington,"  Sparks,  vol.  ix.,  p.  313. 


ARTHUR  LEE  AT  "  GUNSTON  HALL:*  209 

Hall "  at  this  time,  wrote  from  Alexandria  to  his  brother  on 
the  19th  of  February : 

**  Col.  Mason  laments  very  much  that  you  do  not  stand  for  the 
Convention.  He  says  there  will  be  no  one  in  whom  he  can  confide. 
That  you  will  be  regarded  as  having  deserted  a  cause  on  which 
you  have  published  your  persuasion  of  its  being  of  the  last 
moment  to  your  country.  That  this  belief  will  be  strengthened 
by  a  report  which  some  of  your  friends  have  propagated,  that  you 
have  given  up  all  idea  of  opposing  the  constitution  because  your 
friends  think  differently,  and  have  recommended  two  violent  con- 
stitutionalists to  the  freeholders  of  Westmoreland.  He  is  afraid 
these  things  will  injure  your  character  so  much  that  should 
another  General  Convention  be  ordered  you  will  not  be  among 
the  delegates,  which  he  shall  consider  a  misfortune  to  the  country. 
It  is  his  opinion  that  the  Convention  will  recommend  another 
Creneral  Convention."  * 

The  letters  of  the  public  men  in  Virginia  at  this  time  are 
full  of  speculations  as  to  the  probable  complexion  of  the 
Convention,  and  the  result  anticipated  was  federal  or  anti- 
federal  according  to  the  bias  of  the  writer.  Madison  writing 
to  Jefferson  in  December,  represents  "the  body  of  the  peo- 
ple in  Virginia  as  favorable  *'  to  the  Constitution.  "  What 
•change,**  he  adds,  "  may  be  produced  by  the  united  influ- 
ence of  Mr.  Henry,  Mr.  Mason,  and  the  Governor  with  some 
pretty  able  auxiliaries  is  uncertain.""  Cyrus  Griffin  gave 
currency  to  some  of  the  extravagant  rumors  of  the  day, 
when  he  wrote  from  New  York,  February  15th: 

"Col.  R.  H.  Lee  and  Mr.  John  Page,  men  of  influence  in  Vir- 
ginia, are  relinquishing  their  opposition  ;  but  what  to  us  is  very 
extraordinary  and  unexpected,  we  are  told  that  Mr.  George 
Mason  has  declared  himself  so  great  an  enemy  to  the  Constitu- 
tion that  he  will  heartily  join  Mr.  Henry  and  others  in  promoting 
a  Southern  Confederacy."  * 

'  Lee  Papers,  University  of  Virginia.     (Quoted  in  "  Life  of  E.  Randolph,** 

p.  99) 

*  •*  Writings  of  Madison,"  vol.  i.,  p.  364. 

*  Bancroft's  "  History  of  the  Constitution.*'  vol.  ii.,  p.  461. 

Vol.  n — 14 


2IO     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

Again,  in  April,  he  speaks  of  the  personal  characteristics 
of  the  more  eminent  members  of  the  opposition  in  the 
Convention,  clearly  showing  to  which  side  he  leaned : 

"  In  point  of  virtues  and  real  abilities  the  federal  members  are 
much  superior.  Henry  is  mighty  and  powerful,  but  too  inter- 
ested ;  Mason  too  passionate,  the  governor  by  nature  timid  and 
undecided,  and  Grayson  too  blustering."  ' 

Randolph  was  still  looked  upon  as  an  Antifederalist  by 
the  uninitiated.  Madison,  about  the  same  time,  writes  of 
the  opponent  whom  it  is  probable  he  most  feared :  "  Colonel 
Mason  is  growing  every  day  more  bitter  and  outrageous  in 
his  efforts  to  carry  his  point,  and  will  probably  in  the  end 
be  thrown  by  the  violence  of  his  passions  into  the  politics  of 
Mr.  Henry." "  Washington  wrote  to  Lafayette  in  April,  ex- 
pressing a  belief  that  the  Convention  would  favor  the  adop- 
tion of  the  Constitution.  He  adds  :  "  There  will,  however,  be 
powerful  and  eloquent  speeches  on  both  sides  of  the  ques- 
tion. .  .  .  Henry  and  Mason  arc  its  great  adversaries. 
The  Governor,  if  he  opposes  it  at  all,  will  do  it  feebly."  * 
The  position  of  Edmund  Randolph,  still  undefined  to  the 
public,  was  evidently  no  secret  to  Washington.  George 
Mason's  ally  in  the  Convention  of  1787  was  to  be  his  foe  in 
the  Convention  of  1788,  and  already  in  April  had  given 
token  of  his  tergiversation.  Washington's  influence  in  Fair- 
fax County  had  doubtless  contributed  to  the  election  there 
in  March,  of  Federalists  to  the  Convention.  But  Stafford 
County  elected  George  Mason  with  Andrew  Buchanan. 
The  characteristic  story  is  told  of  George  Mason  at  this 
time,  that  "  he  was  informed  that  if  he  opposed  the  ratifica- 
tion of  the  Federal  Constitution  the  people  of  Alexandria 
would  mob  him,  [when]  he  mounted  his  horse,  rode  to  the 
town,  and  going  up  the  court-house  steps,  said  to  the  sheriff, 
*  Mr.  Sheriff,  will  you  make  proclamation  that  George  Mason 

'  Ibid.^  p.  463. 

«  •*  Writings  of  Madison,"  vol.  i.,  p.  38S. 

•  **  Writings  of  Washington,"  Sparks,  vol.  ix.,  ]>.  356. 


LETTER    TO  ROBERT  CARTER.  211 

will  address  the  people  ?  '  A  crowd  assembled,  and  Mason 
addressed  them,  denouncing  the  Constitution  with  bitter 
invective,  after  which  he  mounted  his  horse  and  returned 
home."'  One  of  the  opposition  delegates,  from  Loudoun 
County,  was  George  Mason's  nephew,  Stevens  Thomson 
Mason.  His  vote  was  always  given  to  the  Antifederalists, 
though  his  youth  and  modesty  prevented  him  from  speaking 
in  the  Convention. 

Two  letters  of  George  Mason,  written  in  April  and  May, 
are  all  that  remain  to  us  of  his  correspondence  at  this 
period.  One  of  them  is  addressed  to  Robert  Carter,  of 
"  Nomini,'*  and  the  other  to  John  Francis  Mercer,  who  had 
been  a  delegate  in  the  Federal  Convention  from  Maryland, 
and  held  similar  views  to  Mason  on  the  subject  of  the  Con- 
stitution. He  had  taken  charge  of  some  law  business  for 
Colonel  Mason  on  the  death  of  Thomas  Stone,  which  event 
occurred  in  Alexandria  the  previous  October : 

GuNSTON  Hall,  April  30th,  1788. 

Dear  Sir  : 

This  will  be  delivered  you  by  my  son  John,  who  is  going  to 
settle  in  Bordeaux,  having  lately  entered  into  partnership  with 
two  Maryland  gentlemen  (Messrs.  Joseph  and  James  Fen  wick) 
who  about  a  year  or  two  ago  established  a  house  there,  the  firm 
of  which  has  hitherto  been  Joseph  Fenwick  and  Company. 
Their  capital  will  not  be  large  (only  about  t,ooo  sterling  each), 
and  their  plan  is  to  give  no  credit,  nor  even  advance  more  than 
the  value  of  effects  in  their  hands  for  any  man.  This  at  the 
same  time  that  it  will  enable  them  to  send  out  their  correspond- 
ent's goods,  upon  better  terms  than  those  can,  who  buy  upon 
credit,  will  also  be  the  most  effectual  means  of  rendering  safe 
whatever  property  their  friends  shall  think  fit  to  commit  to  their 
charge.  They  are  determined  to  examine  themselves,  into  the 
prices  and  quality  of  all  the  goods  they  send  to  America  ;  and  as 
wines,  brandy,  silks,  cambrics,  chintz,  calicoes,  and  several  other 
articles  may  be  purchased  in  France,  of  which  Bordeaux  is  one 
of  the  greatest  trading  towns,  as  cheap  as  in  any  part  of  Europe, 

*  J.  Esten  Cooke  in  Magazine  0/  American  History ^  May,  1884. 


212      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

they  hope  to  be  able  to  give  general  satisfaction  ;  and  there 
being  no  other  American  house  in  Bordeaux  they  flatter  them- 
selves with  considerable  encouragement  and  preference,  from 
their  own  country,  so  long  as  they  continue  to  deserve  it.  They 
daily  expect  a  ship  of  about  300  hhds.  to  load  in  Potomac  river, 
upon  consignment,  to  their  address.  Any  tobacco,  clear  of 
trash  and  sound,  although  not  of  extraordinary  quality,  will 
answer  the  French  market ;  but  from  the  number  of  British  and 
Irish  smugglers  who  frequent  Bordeaux,  I  have  reason  to  believe 
that  fine,  stout,  dark,  waxy  tobacco,  of  the  best  quality,  will  find 
as  good  a  market  there  as  in  Europe. 

If  you  can  make  it  convenient  to  encourage  the  house,  with  a 
consignment  of  some  of  your  tobacco,  I  am  sure  you  will  find 
from  them  the  strictest  justice ;  and  I  hope  their  attention  to 
their  friends'  interest,  by  rendering  the  correspondence  mutually 
advantageous,  will  merit  a  continuation  of  your  favors, 

I  am,  dear  sir, 

Your  most  obedient  servant, 

G.  Mason. 
Robert  Carter,  Esq., 

Nominy, 

Westmoreland  County. 

Per  Mr.  John  Mason.'  ) 

Virginia,  Gunston  Hall,  May  i,  1788. 
Dear  Sir  : 

Your  favor  of  the  i8th  of  April  did  not  come  to  hand  until  to- 
day. I  am  exceedingly  obliged  to  you  for  the  trouble  you  have 
taken  to  investigate  the  situation  of  my  affair  with  Rutland.  Had 
my  former  counsel,  Mr.  Stone,  taken  half  as  much,  it  would  have 
saved  me  a  great  deal  of  vexation,  and  probably  much  loss,  which, 
I  fear,  by  his  neglect  I  shall  now  sustain. 

I  thoroughly  agree  with  you  in  thinking  Mr.  James  Little's  debt, 
under  the  circumstances  you  mention,  must  have  preference  to 
mine,  and  that  my  case,  so  far  as  it  is  affected  by  that  debt,  is 
without  remedy.  The  only  thing  which  could  be  done  is  what 
you  have  so  kindly  determined  to  do,  to  see  that  the  sale  is  fairly 
conducted,  that  the  value,  as  near  as  circumstances  will  admit, 
may  be  procured  for  that  part  of  the  property  on  which  the  fi:  fa: 

'  MS.  Letter. 


LETTER    TO  JOHN  FRANCIS  MERCER.  21 3 

was  served  for  Mr.  Little's  debt,  that  my  security  may  be  as  little 
\word  iU€gibli\  by  it  as  possible.  I  should  be  glad  to  know 
whether  Rutland's  new  store,  or  warehouse  and  wharf  (which  I 
conceive  the  most  valuable  part  of  his  improvements)  are  upon 
the  part  advertised  to  be  sold  for  Mr.  Little's  debt.  From  Rut- 
land's account  of  things,  I  am  also  inclined  to  suspect  there  has 
been  some  attempt  made  by  him  and  Mr.  Duvall,  to  subject  my 
mortgaged  property  to  some  demand  of  the  State  against  them. 
Upon  reflecting  on  some  past  circumstances,  I  have  some  hopes 
that,  upon  examination  it  will  appear  that  Mrs.  Rutland  was  of 
age  when  she  relinquished  her  right  of  dower,  on  the  twenty- 
second  of  February,  1787.  Mr.  Rutland  went  to  London  with  a 
shipload  of  tobacco  in  1783,  and  I  remember  it  was  reported  he 
was  engaged  to  this  lady  some  time  before  he  left  the  country. 
However,  if  Mrs.  Rutland  was  not  of  age  at  the  the  time  she  re- 
linquished her  right  of  dower,  I  hope  she  will  be  prevailed  on  to 
relinquish  it  now  ;  not  only  from  motives  of  justice,  as  I  gave 
Mr.  Rutland  the  indulgence  I  did,  upon  the  assurance  of  her  re- 
linquishment of  dower,  but  because  her  relinquishment  will  do 
her  no  injury  though  it  may  benefit  me  ;  for  the  land  will  be  sold 
by  virtue  of  Mr.  Carroll's  mortgage  made  before  her  marriage, 
which  I  presume  will  bar  her  claim  of  dower  against  the  pur- 
chaser, and  her  pretension  of  dower  as  to  my  mortgage  would 
have  no  other  effect  than  injuring  me,  in  causing  the  land  to  sell 
for  less  than  its  value.  I  think  I  have  been  informed  that  Mr. 
Rutland  had  a  tract  of  land  or  two,  particularly  one  in  Mont- 
gomery, Frederick  or  Washington,  at  the  time  of  my  judgment 
against  him,  which  Mr.  Stone  did  not  include  in  my  mortgage, 
thinking  the  mortgaged  premises  sufficient  without ;  and  if  I  re- 
member right,  there  is  a  clause  in  the  mortgage  declaring,  if  they 
should  prove  insufficient,  that  I  do  not  lose  my  remedy  against 
any  other  part  of  his  property.  Those  lands  then,  if  he  had  such 
at  the  time,  are  still  subject  to  my  judgment,  in  whatsoever  hands 
they  may  now  be,  and  it  may  probably  be  a  matter  of  importance 
to  me  ;  as  I  very  much  fear  that  the  incumbrances  upon  the 
mortgaged  premises,  which  I  knew  nothing  of,  confiding  entirely 
in  Mr.  Stone  on  the  occasion,  will  fall  short  of  securing  my  debt 
I  beg  the  favor  of  you,  my  dear  sir,  to  inquire  particularly  in  this 
matter,  and  I  must  also  entreat  you  to  push  my  attachment 


f 


214     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

against  Mr.  Stephen  West  to  as  speedy  decision  as  you  can  ;  I 
presume  Mr.  West  can  have  no  defence  to  make  but  such  as  tends 
merely  to  delay. 

I  wish  to  know,  as  soon  as  you  can  conveniently  inform  me, 
whether  you  have  got  my  papers  from  Mr.  Stone's  executors,  par- 
ticularly the  state  of  the  case  in  Ross's  suit  against  me  for  a  tract 
of  the  Ohio  Company's  land,  and  your  opinion  of  the  said  suit 
I  think  I  gave  you  some  memorandum  also  respecting  the  Ohio 
Company's  title  to  a  tract  of  land  adjoining  Fort  Cumberland, 
called  the  Treasury  of  Walnut  Bottom  fraudulently  granted  by 
Governor  Eden  to  one  French,  a  creature  of  his. 

From  the  returns  I  have  seen  of  the  elections  here,  I  think  the 
Convention  of  Virginia  will  be  so  equally  divided,  that  no  man 
can  at  present  form  a  judgment  of  what  may  be  the  determina- 
tion. The  Federalists,  as  they  improperly  style  themselves,  talk 
of  a  considerable  majority  ;  but  it  is  notorious  that  many  of  them 
\torn\  honor  of  their  cause  be  it  spoken,  stick  at  no  falsehood  or 
torn\  to  accomplish  their  purpose.  As  soon  as  any  tolerably 
torn\  judgment  can  be  formed  of  the  politics  of  our  Convention 
I  will  not  fail  to  communicate  them  to  you. 

I  beg  my  compliments  to  your  lady,  and  am,  with  the  most 

sincere  esteem  and  regard,  dear  sir. 

Your  affectionate  friend  and  servant, 

G.  Mason. 
Col.  John  Francis  Mercer, 

Annapolis,  Maryland.* 

Richard  Henrj^^JLeej-from  his  home  in  Westmoreland, 
wrote  to  George  Mason  at  this  time,  giving  his  views  as  to 
the  course  Virginia  should  pursue  in  the  coming  con- 
vention. 

Chantilly,  May  7,  17S8. 

Dear  Sir  : 

Your  son  delivered  me  the  letter  that  you  were  pleased  to  write 
me  on  the  30th  instant,  and  I  have  promoted  his  views,  as  far  as  it 
is  in  my  power  at  present,  by  directing  the  tobacco  I  had  intended 
to  sell  in  the  country,  to  be  put  on  board  his  vessel.  I  am 
inclined   to   think,  for  the  reasons  assigned  by  him,  that  the 

>  MS.  Letter. 


LETTER  FROM  RICHARD  HENRY  LEE.  21$ 

French  market  will  be  as  good  a  one,  at  least,  as  any  that  we  can 
send  to. 

Give  me  leave  now,  dear  sir,  to  make  a  few  observations  on 
the  important  business  that  will  call  you  to  Richmond  next 
month.  It  seems  pretty  clear  at  present,  that  four  other  States, 
viz..  North  Carolina,  New  York,  Rhode  Island,  and  New  Hamp- 
shire, will  depend  much  upon  Virginia  for  their  determination 
on  the  Convention  project  of  a  new  constitution ;  therefore  it 
becomes  us  to  be  very  circumspect  and  careful  about  the 
conduct  we  pursue,  as,  on  the  one  hand,  every  possible  exertion 
of  wisdom  and  firmness  should  be  employed  to  prevent  danger 
to  civil  liberty,  so,  on  the  other  hand,  the  most  watchful  precau- 
tion should  take  place  to  prevent  the  foes  of  union,  order,  and 
good  government,  from  succeeding  so  far  as  to  prevent  our 
acceptance  of  the  good  part  of  the  plan  proposed.  I  submit 
to  you,  sir,  whether,  to  form  a  consistent  union  of  conduct, 
it  would  not  be  well  for  six  or  eight  leading  friends  to  amend- 
ments to  meet  privately,  and,  having  formed  the  best  possible 
judgment  of  the  members'  sentiments  from  knowledge  of  the 
men,  to  see  how  far  it  may  be  safe  to  press  either  for  modes  of 
amendment  or  the  extent  of  amendments,  and  to  govern  accord- 
ingly. But,  certainly,  the  firmest  stand  should  be  made  against 
the  very  arbitrary  mode  that  has  been  pursued  in  some  States, 
that  is,  to  propose  a  question  of  absolute  rejection  or  implicit 
admission.  For  though  it  is  true  that  the  Convention  plan  looks 
something  like  this,  yet  I  think  every  temperate  man  must  agree 
that  neither  the  Convention,  nor  any  set  of  men  upon  earth,  have 
or  had  a  right  to  insist  upon  such  a  question  of  extremity.  To 
receive  the  good  and  reject  the  bad  is  too  necessary  and  inherent 
a  right  to  be  parted  with.  As  some  subtle  managers  will  be 
upon  the  Convention,  I  believe  you  will  find  entrapping  questions 
proposed  at  first  as  a  ground- work  of  proceeding,  which  will 
hamper,  confine,  and  narrow  all  attempts  to  proper  investigation 
or  necessary  amendment,  and  this  will  be  done  under  the  plaus- 
ible pretext  of  losing  all  by  attempting  any  change.  I  judge  that^ 
it  will  be  so  here,  because  I  observe  a  similar  conduct  has  been 
pursued  in  other  places,  as  in  Maryland  and  Pennsylvania.  I  * 
trust  that  such  uncandid  and  dangerous  stratagems  will  be 
opposed  and  prevented  in  the  Convention  of  Virginia,  and  a 


2l6     UFE  AND  COHRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

thorough,  particular^  and  careful  examination  be  first  made  into 
all  its  parts  as  a  previous  requisite  to  the  formation  of  any  ques- 
tion upon  it  During  this  process  a  tolerable  judgment  may  be 
formed  of  the  sentiments  of  the  generality,  and  a  clue  furnished 
for  forming  successful  propositions  for  amendment,  as  the  candid 
friends  to  this  system  admit  that  amendments  may  be  made  to 
improve  the  plan,  bat  say  that  these  amendments  ought  to  be 
made,  and  may  be  obtained  from  the  new  Congress  without 
endangering  a  total  loss  of  the  proposed  Constitution.  I  say 
that  those  who  talk  thus,  if  they  are  sincere,  will  not  object  to 
this  plan  which,  as  I  propose  it,  is  something  like  the  proceeding 
of  the  Convention  Parliament  of  1688  ;  in  the  form  of  ratifica- 
tion, insert  plainly  and  strongly  such  amendments  as  can  be 
agreed  upon,  and  say,  that  the  people  of  Virginia  do  claim^ 
demand  and  insist  upon  these  as  their  undoubted  rights  and  lib- 
erties which  they  mean  not  to  part  with,  and  if  these  are  not 
obtained  and  secured  by  the  mode  pointed  out  in  the  fifth  article 
of  the  Convention  plan,  in  two  years  after  the  meeting  of  the  new 
Congress,  that  Virginia  shall,  in  that  case,  be  considered  as  dis- 
engaged from  this  ratification.  Under  this  proposition  a  develop- 
ment will  be  made  of  the  sincerity  of  those  who  advocate  the  new 
plan,  the  beneficial  parts  of  it  retained,  and  a  just  security  given 
to  civil  liberty.  In  the  fifth  article  it  is  stated  that  two-thirds  of 
Congress  may  propose  amendments,  which,  being  approved  by 
three-fourths  of  the  legislatures,  become  parts  of  the  Consti- 
tution. By  this  mode,  the  new  Congress  may  obtain  our  amend- 
ments without  risking  the  convulsion  of  conventions,  and  the 
friends  of  the  plan  will  be  gratified  in  what  they  say  is  necessary, 
the  putting  the  government  in  motion,  when,  as  they  again  say, 
amendments  may  and  ought  to  be  obtained.  By  this  mode,  too, 
in  all  probability,  the  undetermined  States,  may  be  brought  to 
harmonize,  and  the  formidable  minorities,  in  the  assenting  States, 
may  be  quieted.  By  this  friendly  and  reasonable  accommoda- 
tion, the  perpetual  distrust  and  opposition,  that  will  inevitably 
follow  the  total  adoption  of  the  plan,  from  the  State  legislatures, 
may  be  happily  prevented,  and  friendly  united  exertions  take 
place.  Much  reflection  has  convinced  me  that  this  mode  is  the 
best  that  I  have  had  an  opportunity  of  cultivating.  I  have, 
therefore,  taken  the  liberty  of  recommending  it  to  your  serious 


SAMUEL  ADAMS  AND  GEORGE  MASON,  21/ 

and  patriotic  attention  ;   in  the  formation  of  these  amendments 
localities  ought  to  be  avoided  as  much  as  possible. 

The  danger  of  monopolized  trade  may  be  prevented  by  calling 
for  the  consent  of  three-fourths  of  the  United  States  on  regula- 
tions of  trade.  The  trial  by  jury,  in  this  State,  to  be  insisted  on, 
as  it  is  used  under  our  present  government,  and  confining  the 
supreme  federal  court  to  the  jurisdiction  of  law^  excluding  f<uL 
The  Massachusetts  amendments,  except  the  second,  and  extend- 
ing the  seventh  to  foreigners  as  well  as  citizens  of  other  States, 
appear  to  me  to  be  very  good,  and  for  their  adoption  the  aid  of 
that  powerful  State  may  be  secured.  The  freedom  of  the  press 
is,  by  no  means,  sufficiently  attended  to  by  Massachusetts,  nor 
have  they  remedied  the  want  of  responsibility  by  the  impolitic 
combination  of  president  and  senate.  It  does  appear  to  me, 
that,  in  the  present  temper  of  America,  if  the  Massachusetts 
amendments,  with  those  suggested  by  me,  being  added,  and 
inserted  in  our  ratification  as  before  stated,  we  may  easily  agree, 
and  I  verily  believe  that  the  most  essential  good  consequences 
would  be  the  result. 

Affectionately  yours, 

Richard  Henry  Lee. 
George  Mason,  Esq. : 

Gunston  Hall.' 

A  curious  mention  is  made  of  George  Mason  in  a  letter  of 
Samuel  Adams  to  Richard  Henry  Lee,  showing  that  he 
had  been,  apparently,  defending  Mason  against  the  stric- 
tures of  the  Boston  Federalists.  Adams  writes  to  his 
Virginia  correspondent  on  the  3d  of  December,  1787,  dis- 
cussing the  new  Constitution,  and  he  adds,  in  a  postscript : 
"  As  I  have  thought  it  a  piece  of  justice,  I  have  ventured  to 
say,  that  I  had  often  heard  from  the  best  patriots  from 
Virginia,  that  Mr.  G.  Mason  was  an  early,  active,  and  able 
advocate  for  the  liberties  of  America."  •  There  had  been 
no  opportunity  for  personal  acquaintance  between  these 
two  representative  men  of  their  sections,  it  would  seem. 
Yet  we  can  fancy  they  would  have  had  much  sympathy  in 

"  ••  Life  of  R.  H.  Lcc."  vol.  ii.,  p.  88.     By  Richard  H.  Lee. 
•  Ibid,^  p.  130. 


2l8      LIFE  AND  CORRBSPONDENCB   OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

their  tastes  and  convictions,  for  in  the  characteristics  of 
independence,  public  spirit,  and  absence  of  personal  ambition 
there  is  great  resemblance  between  them.  And  on  the 
political  question  of  the  hour,  Samuel  Adams  and  Geoi|;e 
Mason  held  the  same  just  views,  as  to  the  distinction,  as 
Adams  phrased  it,  "  between  the  federal  powers  vested  in 
Congress  and  the  sovereign  authority  belonging  to  the 
several  States,  which  is  the  palladium  of  the  private  and 
personal  rights  of  the  citizens." 


CHAPTER  VII. 

IN  THE  VIRGINIA   CONVENTION. 


Virginia  had  assembled  in  her  Convention  of  1788,  a  re- 
markable body  of  men,  the  flower  of  her  statesmen,  sages, 
patriots.  It  may  fairly  be  affirmed  that  no  other  common- 
wealth on  thecontinent  could  have  called  together  as  great  an 
array  of  abilities.  And  yet  Virginia  had  not  exhausted  her 
resources;  Washington,  Jefferson,  Richard  Henry  Lee,  were 
not  included  in  this  famous  Convention.  WiUiam  Wirt,  in 
his  rhetorical  manner,  has  given  a  characterization  of  the 
most  conspicuous  members.  There  were,  among  the  younger 
generation  Madison,  Marshall,  Monroe ;  there  were  "  those 
sages  of  other  days,  Pendleton  and  Wythe ;  there  was  seen 
displayed  the  Spartan  vigor  and  compactness  of  George 
Nicholas ;  and  there  shone  the  radiant  genius  and  sensibility 
of  Grayson ;  the  Roman  energy  and  the  Attic  wit  of  George 
Mason  was  there ;  and  there  also  the  classic  taste  and  har- 
mony of  Edmund  Randolph;  'the  splendid  conflagration' 
of  the  high-minded  Innes;  and  the  matchless  eloquence  of 
the  immortal  Henry," ' 

On  the  one  side  were  ranged  Madison,  Marshall,  Pendle- 
ton, George  Nicholas,  Innes,  and  Edmund  Randolph ;  on  the 
other  Geotge  Mason,  Patrick  Heniy,  William  Grayson, 
James  Monroe,  Benjamin  Harrison,  and  John  Tyler.  "Con- 
spicuous among  those  who  opposed  the  ratification  of  the 
constitution,"  writes  Flanders,  "were  Patrick  Henry,  George 
'  Wirt's  ■'  Life  of  Pttrick  Heoiy."  p.  363. 


220     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

Mason  and  William  Grayson ;  a  combination  of  eloquence, 
vigor,  and  genius,  not  often  surpassed  and  seldom  equalled."  * 
Says  George  Ticknor  Curtis  in  his  account  of  the  opposition 
to  the  Constitution  in  Virginia : 

"  The  State  was  to  feel,  it  is  true,  the  almost  overshadowing 
influence  of  Washington  in  favor  of  the  new  system  .  .  .  But 
it  was  to  feel  also  the  strenuous  opposition  of  Patrick  Henry,  that 
great  natural  orator  of  the  Revolution,  whose  influence  over 
popular  assemblies  was  enormous,  and  who  added  acuteness, 
subtility,  and  logic  to  the  fierce  sincerity  of  his  unstudied  ha- 
rangues, and  the  not  less  strenuous  or  effective  opposition  of 
George  Mason,  who  had  little  of  the  eloquence  and  passion  of 
his  renowned  compatriot,  but  who  was  one  of  the  most  profound 
and  able  of  all  the  American  statesmen  opposed  to  the  Constitu- 
tion, while  he  was  inferior  in  general  powers  and  resources  to  not 
more  than  two  or  three  of  those  who  framed  and  advocated  it."  • 

William  Grayson,  the  least  known  of  the  great  trio  in 
opposition,  was  from  George  Mason's  neighborhood,  and 
they  were  doubtless  intimate  personal  friends.  Grayson's 
home  was  in  Dumfries,  and  on  his  untimely  death,  in  1790, 
he  was  buried  in  the  family  vault  at  "  Belle  Air,**  the  seat  of 
his  brother,  the  Rev.  Spence  Grayson,  rector  of  Dettingen 
parish,  Prince  William  County,  whose  country  place  was 
near  the  county  town.  The  Graysons,  it  is  believed,  were 
first  or  second  cousins  of  James  Monroe,  whose  father's 
Christian  name  was  Spence.* 

The  Convention  met  in  Richmond  on  the  2d  of  June,  at 
the  "  public  buildings,"  or  old  Capitol,  and  Edmund  Pendle- 

>  "Chief  Justices  of  the  United  States,"  vol.  ii..  p.  328. 

*  **  Constitutional  History  of  the  United  States,"  vol.  i.,  p.  63. 

*  Mr.  William  Grayson  Mann,  whose  maternal  grandfather,  Robert  Carter,  of 
"Sabine  Hall,"  married  William  Grayson's  only  daughter,  writes  the  author  : 
**  I  have  at  different  times  during  the  last  thirty-five  years  attempted  to  collect 
materials  for  writing  the  life  of  this  truly  great  man,  but  in  vain.  No  state 
papers  or  speeches  in  extenso  survived  the  destruction  by  fire  of  the  old  family 
mansion  at  Dumfries,  a  few  miles  south  of  Mount  Vernon,  on  the  Potomac. 
Col.  Grayson  had  studied  law  at  the  Inner  Temple,  where  I  have  found  the 
chambers  he  once  occupied." 


LEADERS  OF  THE   TWO  PARTIES.  221 

ton  was  elected  president.  A  committee  of  privileges  and 
elections  being  appointed,  Benjamin  Harrison  was  named 
chairman,  and  George  Mason  came  second  on  the  list  of 
members.  After  some  preliminary  business  Colonel  Mason 
moved  an  adjournment,  the  Convention  to  meet  the  next 
day  at  the  *'  New  Academy  on  Schockoe  Hill."  This  build- 
ing, erected  in  1786  for  the  promotion  of  the  arts  and  scien- 
ces, was  used  also  as  a  theatre.  It  was  burned  down  later, 
and  near  it  the  new  theatre  was  built,  destroyed  by  fire  in 
181 1,  on  the  site  of  which  now  stands  the  Monumental 
Church.  Here  at  the  "  New  Academy  "  the  Convention  held 
their  sessions  after  the  first  day,  and  their  meetings  were 
open  to  the  public,  visitors  coming  from  all  parts  of  the 
State  to  hear  the  important  subject  under  discussion.  And 
the  assemblage  was  a  most  imposing  one  numerically.  "  It 
was,"  says  Grigsby,  "  more  than  four  times  greater  than  the 
Convention  which  framed  the  Federal  Constitution  when  that 
body  was  full,  and  it  exceeded  it,  as  it  ordinarily  was,  more 
than  six  times."  It  consisted,  as  this  writer  adds,  "  of  the 
public  men  of  three  generations."  *  The  army,  the  judiciary, 
the  planters  of  the  State,  were  the  three  interests  most 
prominent  in  the  representation,  and  the  old  soldiers  were 
generally  in  favor  of  the  Constitution,  as  the  habits  of  the 
army  officer  naturally  lead  him  to  approve  of  the  strong  arm 
in  government,  while  the  lawyer  looks  more  to  the  questions 
of  principle  that  are  involved,  and  is  more  jealous  of  liberty. 
Of  all  this  assemblage  of  more  or  less  prominent  figures 
there  were  four,  says  our  historian,  who  attracted  the  atten- 
tion of  strangers  before  all  the  rest.  Pendleton  and  Wythe, 
leaders  among  the  Federalists,  "with  George  Mason  and 
Patrick  Henry,  were  those  first  sought  by  the  spectator,  as  in 
a  convention,  forty  years  later,  were  Madison,  Monroe,  Mar- 
shall, and  Fayette." "  George  Mason  and  Patrick  Henry  had 
rooms  at  the  Swan,  a  famous  tavern  on  Broad  Street,  still 
standing,  and  they  were  often  seen  together  walking  arm  in 

'  "  History  of  the  Virginia  Federal  Convention,"  p.  34.  Hugh  Blair  Grigsby. 
•  Ibid.^  note  to  p.  36. 


222      UFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

arm  on  their  way  to  the  Convention.  "  George  Mason  was 
dressed  in  a  full  suit  of  black,  and  was  remarkable  for  the 
urbanity  and  dignity  with  which  he  received  and  returned 
the  courtesies  of  those  who  passed  him."  ' 

A  question  had  been  decided  on  the  2d  of  June,  the  first 
day  of  the  Convention,  of  which  we  have  an  account  in  a 
contemporary  newspaper,  with  the  arguments  of  George 
Mason  on  the  subject.  This  was,  whether  Robertson  (with 
his  assistants),  to  whom  we  are  indebted  for  our  reports  of 
the  Convention,  should  be  employed  by  this  assembly  to 
take  down  their  speeches.  George  Mason  opposed  it  firstly 
as  contrary  to  parliamentary  usage,  and  secondly  because  he 
believed  Robertson  to  be  a  Federal  partisan  and,  therefore, 
not  likely  to  do  justice  to  the  arguments  of  the  opposition 
members.  A  correspondent  of  the  Fredericksburg  Virginia 
Herald^  one  of  the  interested  throng  of  spectators  in  attend- 
ance on  the  Convention  in  Richmond,  wrote  June  2d  : 

*'  It  was  to-day  agitated  whether  the  short-hand  gentlemen 
should  be  suffered  to  take  down  the  business  of  the  house  for 
public  information.  Opposed  by  Henry,  Mason,  Grayson  and 
White  with  success.  Mr.  Mason  rested  his  opposition  upon  this 
ground,  that  these  gentlemen  were  strangers — that  it  was  an  im- 
portant trust  for  anyone — for  not  only  the  people  at  large  might 
be  misinformed,  but  a  fatal  stab  might  be  given  to  a  gentleman  of 
the  house  from  a  perversion  of  his  language — that  it  was  a  breach 
of  privilege,  and  had  been  frequently  determined  so  by  the  House 
of  Commons  ;  that  to  show  the  member  who  moved  the  question, 
that  his  objections  proceeded  from  those  principles,  and  not  from 
a  wish  to  be  again  a  member  of  another  Conclave^  he  had  given 
his  voice  for  an  adjournment  to  the  Theatre,  where,  surrounded 
by  his  countrymen,  he  would  endeavor  to  speak  the  language  of 
his  soul.  Mr.  Nicholas  was  up  several  times  upon  this  subject, 
and  had  been  the  first  mover  of  it,  but  at  last  relinquished  it  as 
not  tenable."  * 

George  Mason  refers  to  this  matter  of  the  short-hand 
writer  in  one  of  his  letters  to  his  son  to  be  given  later.    The 

*  Ibid,,  p.  4  (note).  •  Marylattd  Journal,  June  lo,  1788. 


MASQAT'S  APPEARANCE  DESCRIBED.  22$ 


prejudice  against  reporters  lingered  long  in  the'  House  of 
Commons,  and  was  shared,  it  seems,  by  these  eighteenth- 
century  Americans. 

On  the  3d  of  June,  after  the  resolution  of  Congress  on  the 
subject  of  the  Constitution,  the  report  of  the  Federal  Con- 
vention, and  the  resolutions  of  the  General  Assembly  were 
read,  George  Mason  addressed  the  Convention.  Grigsby 
pictures  the  scene : 

''  In  an  instant  the  insensible  hum  of  the  body  was  hushed,  and 
the  eyes  of  all  were  fixed  upon  him.  How  he  appeared  that  day 
as  he  rose  in  that  large  assemblage,  his  once  raven  hair  white  as 
snow,  his  stalwart  figure,  attired  in  deep  mourning,  still  erect,  his 
black  eyes  fairly  flashing  forth  the  flame  that  burned  in  his  bosom, 
the  tones  of  his  voice  deliberate  and  full  as  when,  in  the  first 
House  of  Delegates,  he  sought  to  sweep  from  the  statute  book 
those  obliquities  which  marred  the  beauty  of  the  young  republic, 
or  uttered  that  withering  sarcasm  which  tinges  his  portrait  by  the 
hand  of  Jefferson,  we  have  heard  from  the  lips,  and  seen  reflected 
from  the  moistened  eyes,  of  trembling  age.  His  reputation  as  the 
author  of  the  Declaration  of  Rights  and  of  the  first  Constitution 
of  a  free  Commonwealth  ;  as  the  responsible  director  of  some  of 
the  leading  measures  of  general  legislation  during  the  war  and 
after  its  close  ;  his  position  as  a  prominent  member  of  the  Gen- 
eral Convention  that  framed  the  Constitution,  which  had  been 
adopted  under  his  solemn  protest,  and  his  well-known  resolve  to 
oppose  the  ratification  with  all  his  acknowledged  abilities,  were 
calculated  to  arrest  attention.  He  was  sixty-two  years  old,  and 
had  not  been  more  than  twelve  years  continuously  in  the  public 
councils,  but  from  his  entrance  into  public  life  he  was  confessedly 
the  first  man  in  every  assembly  of  which  he  was  a  member,  though 
rarely  seen  on  the  floor  except  on  great  occasions.  But  the  interest 
with  which  he  was  now  watched  was  heightened  by  another  cause. 
From  his  lips  was  anxiously  awaited  by  all  parties  the  programme 
of  the  war  which  was  to  be  waged  against  the  new  system.' 


M  1 


There  was  a  division  among  the  Antifederalists  as  to  the 
line  of  policy  to  be  pursued.     Patrick  Henry  considered  that 

'  *'  History  of  the  Virginia  Federal  Convention,"  p.  70. 


224     ^^^  ^^^  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

the  General  Convention  had  usurped  powers  not  bestowed 
upon  them  in  overthrowing  the  Articles  of  Confederation^ 
George  Mason  could  not  take  this  ground  as  he  had  been  a 
member  of  the  Convention  and  approved  of  the  change, 
though  he  was  not  satisfied  as  to  the  final  result.  And  he 
urged  now  a  discussion  of  the  Constitution,  clause  by  clause, 
before  any  general  previous  question  be  put.  He  wished  for 
a  full  and  free  investigation  of  the  subject,  since  they  sought 
to  secure,  "  as  far  as  possible,  to  the  latest  generation,  the 
happiness  and  liberty  of  the  people."  *  This  mode  of  dis- 
cussion proved  eventually  of  great  disservice  to  his  own 
party,  while  it  helped  the  Federalists.     But  as  Grigsby  says : 

"  The  main  object  of  Mason  was  to  prevent  a  premature  com- 
mittal of  the  House  by  a  vote  on  any  separate  part  of  the  Consti- 
tution ;  for  he  well  knew  that  an  approval  of  one  part  would  be 
urged  argumentatively  to  obtain  the  approval  of  another  part,  and 
that,  if  the  Constitution  were  approved  in  detail,  it  would  be  ap- 
proved as  a  whole  ;  and  so  far  as  his  motion  postponed  immedi- 
ate voting,  it  was  wise  and  well-timed."  * 

Yet,  to  restrict  the  discussion  of  the  general  tendency  of 
the  Constitution  and  confine  the  debate  to  single  clauses  gave 
the  Federalists  an  advantage,  as  the  historian  of  the  Conven- 
tion points  out.  However,  the  Antifederalists,  who  were 
fully  persuaded  of  the  injurious  scope  of  the  whole  instru- 
ment, were  not  to  be  restrained  from  dwelling  upon  this 
fact.  Tyler,  in  the  interests  of  the  opposition,  then  moved 
that  a  committee  of  the  whole  Convention  should  take  into 
consideration  the  proposed  form  of  government.  Madison 
signified  his  assent  to  this  arrangement,  and  George  Mason 
moved  his  resolution,  which  was  agreed  to  by  the  Convention. 

Thus  was  the  plan  of  campaign  laid  down  at  the  outset 
by  the  two  protagonists  of  the  Convention,  Mason  and 
Madison.  They  had  waged  a  war  of  principle  in  the  Fed- 
eral Convention  which  had  been  merely  adjourned,  as  to 
its  final  issue,  to  the  soil  of  their  native  State.     Though  the 

*  Appendix  Hi.        •  **  History  of  the  Virginia  Federal  Convention,"  p.  72. 


PROGRAMME  OF  THE  ANT/FEDERALISTS.  22$ 

party  of  Madison  had  been  the  victor  in  the  former  assem- 
blage, yet  was  there  a  good  prospect  of  the  amendment 
party  triumphing  here.  Henry  Lee,  of  Westmoreland, 
wished  the  discussion  to  begin  immediately,  but  the  other 
side  was  not  to  be  hurried,  as  many  of  the  members  had  not 
yet  arrived,  and  both  George  Mason  and  Benjamin  Harrison 
advocated  an  adjournment  until  the  next  day.  On  the  4th 
of  June  the  business  properly  commenced,  the  Convention 
resolving  itself  into  a  committee  of  the  whole,  George 
Wythe  in  the  chair.  Nicholas,  Henry,  Randolph,  and 
Mason  were  the  four  speakers  on  this  day.  Edmund  Ran- 
dolph showed  his  colors,  coming  out  unequivocally  for  the 
unamended  Constitution,  he  who  had  a  few  months  before  in 
the  Federal  Convention  declared  for  amendments  and  a 
"  Second  General  Convention."  Patrick  Henry  did  not  fall 
into  line  immediately  with  George  Mason,  but  rather  over- 
stepped the  mark,  and  his  first  exception  to  the  Constitution 
was  taken  in  somewhat  free-lance  fashion.  He  took  issue 
with  the  Federal  Convention  for  changing  the  character  of 
the  government  "  to  the  utter  annihilation  of  the  most 
solemn  engagements  of  the  States.**  There  was  a  con- 
fcderacy  of  nine  States  to  be  formed  to  the  exclusion  of  the 
other  four,  and  this  new  confederacy  was  to  form  a  consoli- 
dated government.  Henry  then  made  his  famous  objection 
to  the  phrase  in  the  preamble,  "  We,  the  People,"  etc.*  That 
it  was  understood  by  the  Federal  Convention  in  any  "  con- 
solidated **  sense,  or  as  other  than  a  convenient  style  of  ex- 
pression for  the  people  of  the  several  States,  may  be  most 
positively  denied,  or  George  Mason's  jealous  ear  would  have 
been  offended,  and  his  voice  have  been  raised  against  it. 
Since  neither  Mason  nor  any  other  defender  of  the  States  in 
the  Convention  saw  fit  to  oppose  the  use  of  this  phrase,  it  is 
apparent  that  they  were  quite  sure  of  its  harmless  nature. 
However,  it  was  to  be  distorted,  as  Patrick  Henry  feared, 
from  its  obvious  signification,  and  to  be  used  by  the  party 
of  consolidation  for  their  own  purposes  at  a  later  day. 

'  '*  Debates  of  the  Virginia  Convention,'*  Robertson, 
vol.  ii — 15 


226     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

The  first  and  second  sections  of  the  first  article  were 
under  consideration.  Randolph  had  spoken  after  Henry. 
"  He  was  followed/*  says  Grigsby,  **  by  Mason,  whose  words 
were  now  watched  with  an  interest  hardly  exceeded  by  that 
which  existed  when  he  first  rose  to  address  the  house ;  for 
he  too  had  been  a  member  of  the  General  Convention,  and 
had  declared  in  that  body  that,  on  certain  conditions,  none 
of  which  included  the  words  of  the  preamble,  he  would 
approve  the  Constitution  ;  but  though  no  parliamentarian, 
he  saw  the  snare  into  which  his  opponents  were  anxious 
that  he  should  fall,  and  adroitly  avoided  it  by  taking  ground 
which  placed  him  in  instant  communion  with  Henry.**  *  He 
maintained  that  the  clause  in  the  second  section,  "  giving 
the  first  hint  of  the  general  government  laying  direct  taxes," 
changed  the  union  into  a  "  national  government.**  He  urged 
with  great  force  the  danger  of  leaving  the  manner  of  levying 
taxes  to  those  who,  in  the  nature  of  things,  cannot  be  ac- 
quainted with  the  situation  of  those  on  whom  they  are  to 
impose  them,  when  it  can  be  done  by  those  who  are  well 
acquainted  with  it.  He  thought  the  general  government 
should  have  "  the  power  of  demanding  their  quotas  of  the 
States,  with  an  alternative  of  laying  direct  taxes  in  case  of 
non-compliance.**  The  same  sum  raised  in  one  way,  as  he 
declared,  would  be  very  oppressive  raised  in  another  way. 
The  second  objection  made  by  Colonel  Mason  was  directed 
against  that  part  of  the  same  section  which  dealt  with  repre- 
sentation. He  did  not  think  it  a  full  and  free  representation. 
The  Constitution  did  not  expressly  provide  one  representa- 
tive for  every  thirty  thousand,  but  it  states :  "  the  number  of 
representatives  shall  not  exceed  one  for  every  30,000.**  So  it 
might  be  reduced  without  violating  the  letter  of  the  law. 
Colonel  Mason  concluded  with  reiterating  his  objection  to 
the  taxing  power  given  Congress.  With  this  feature  amended, 
this  part  of  the  Constitution  would  receive  his  sanction,  but 
he  regarded  it  as  a  sine  qua  nan}  Madison  closed  the  debate 
with  a  few  remarks,  reserving  a  fuller  reply  to  a  future  occa- 

■  **  History  of  the  Virginia  Federal  Convention,"  p.  92.         '  Appendix  iii. 


MADISON  DISPARAGES  HIS  OPPONENTS,  22/ 

sion.  George  Mason  does  not  seem  to  have  spoken  in  the 
Federal  Convention  against  giving  Congress  the  power  of 
direct  taxation.  He  had  there  urged  the  clause  against 
taxing  exports,  and  further  reflection  had  evidently  im- 
pressed him  with  the  conviction  that  the  power  of  Congress 
should  be  limited,  in  this  matter  of  revenue,  to  the  duties 
on  imposts,  as  explained  in  the  fourth  amendment  of  the 
Virginia  Convention.  Madison  on  the  evening  of  the  4th  of 
June  wrote  an  account  of  the  Convention  proceedings  to 
Washington,  which  the  latter  in  turn  retailed  to  John  Jay  a 
few  days  later.  It  is  evident  the  course  taken  by  Edmund 
Randolph  had  greatly  elated  the  Federalists.  Madison 
writes  disparagingly  of  his  antagonists,  Henry  and  Mason, 
accusing  them  of  making  "a  lame  figure"  in  the  recent 
debate.  Still  he  is  by  no  means  confident  of  the  result. 
"  Kentucky  .  .  .  is  supposed  to  be  generally  adverse,  and 
every  kind  of  address  is  going  on  privately  to  work  on  the 
local  interests  and  prejudices  of  that  and  other  quarters."* 
There  were  fourteen  representatives  in  the  Convention  from 
the  district  of  Kentucky. 

Unlike  the  Federal  Convention,  which  held  secret  ses- 
sions,  the  Virginia  Convention,  as  has  been  said,  was  open 
to  the  public,  and  was  attended  by  large  crowds  of  citizens, 
who  gave  the  most  eager  attention  to  all  that  was  said.  It 
is  to  be  regretted  that  there  were  not  some  fluent  scribes 
among  these  spectators,  to  write  down  their  impressions  of 
the  scenes  they  witnessed,  and  to  preserve  for  posterity  a 
record  of  the  logic  and  eloquence  there  manifested.  The 
reports  of  Robertson,  as  will  appear,  were  not  wholly  to  be 
relied  on.  And  the  Federalist  Madison  writing  under  the 
excitement  of  the  contest  was  certainly  not  to  be  trusted 
in  his  estimate  of  the  Antifederalist  champions  opposed  to 
him.  But  with  the  debates  before  us,  as  they  have  come 
down  to  our  generation,  there  seems  no  cause  for  the  Feder- 
alists to  take  any  credit  to  themselves,  up  to  this  point  of 
time.     George  Nicholas  had  advocated  the  system  of  repre- 

'  '*  Writings  of  Washington,"  Sparks,  vol.  ix.,  p.  370  (note)  and  p.  373. 


228      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

sentation,  but  the  ambiguity  remained  unanswerable,  in  the 
wording  of  the  provision.  Edmund  Randolph  could  only 
put  forth  in  his  defence  of  the  Constitution — and  of  himself 
— the  poor  plea  of  expediency.  To  the  three  or  four  tangi- 
ble objections  made  by  the  opposition  to  the  first  part  of 
the  Constitution  there  was  as  yet  no  answer  given. 

From  the  4th  of  June  to  the  13th,  though  still  nominally 
employed  upon  the  first  and  second  sections  of  the  first 
article,  the  Convention  in  fact  diverged  widely  from  the 
point,  and  discussed  the  Constitution  at  large.  The  great 
speech  of  the  5th  of  June  was  made  by  Patrick  Henry  in 
answer  to  Pendleton  and  General  Henry  Lee.  He  brought 
forward  new  objections.  "  How  does  your  trial  by  jury 
stand  ?  In  civil  cases  gone — not  sufficiently  secured  in 
criminal."  He  thought  also  that  the  militia  should  not  be 
in  the  hands  of  Congress.  And  he  dwelt  upon  the  folly  of 
looking  for  subsequent  amendments  when  it  was  in  their 
power  to  insist  upon  them  beforehand.  He  quoted  from 
the  Virginia  Bill  of  Rights,  the  third  article,  on  the  right  of 
the  people  to  reform  or  abolish  their  government ;  the  fifth 
article,  on  taxation  ;  the  sixth  article,  requiring  the  consent 
of  the  people  to  suspend  the  laws ;  and  showed  how  each 
was  endangered  by  the  new  Constitution.  One  phrase  here 
is  prophetic  :  "  When  the  people  of  Virginia  at  a  future  day 
shall  wish  to  alter  their  government,  though  they  should  be 
unanimous  in  this  desire,  yet  they  may  be  prevented  there- 
from by  a  despicable  minority  at  the  extremity  of  the  United 
States."  He  objected  to  giving  Congress  the  control  of  the 
custom-houses,  and  also  to  the  inadequate  reprpsentation  of 
the  people  in  that  body.  Like  the  other  Southern  patriots, 
Henry  believed  that  the  South  would  eventually  be  numeri- 
cally stronger  than  the  North,  a  pathetic  illusion  as  was  too 
soon  made  apparent.  The  whole  scheme  of  the  government 
Henry  thought  too  extravagant,  and  the  President,  with 
"  the  powers  of  a  king,"  at  the  head  of  the  army  might 
eventually  overthrow  American  liberties.  Another  specific 
objection  advanced  by  Henry  was  the  control  given  to  Con- 


i 


SPEECH  OF  PATRICK  HENRY,  229 

gress  over  the  time,  place,  and  manner  of  elections.  Again 
he  denounced  the  clause  concerning  the  publication  of  the 
journals  "  from  time  to  time  "  only.  Without  the  obligation 
to  publish  their  proceedings,  they  would  be  without  public 
responsibility.  "  The  Senate,  by  making  treaties,  may  de- 
stroy your  liberty  and  laws  for  want  of  responsibility." 
Jay's  treaty,  a  few  years  later,  seemed  to  many,  just  such  a 
case  as  was  here  anticipated.  Stevens  Thomson  Mason, 
who  was  with  Henry  now  in  the  Convention,  mindful  of  this 
doctrine  of  responsibility,  which  his  uncle  had  also  enforced 
in  the  Federal  Convention,  was  the  senator,  it  will  be 
remembered,  who  gave  Jay's  treaty  to  the  public  prints  in 
1795.  Patrick  Henry  concluded  his  powerful  speech  by 
beseeching  the  Convention  not  to  hurry  Virginia  into  an 
acceptance  of  the  proposed  government  simply  because 
eight  States  had  adopted  it.  They  should  insist  upon  its 
being  amended,  and  not  fear  this  bugbear  of  anarchy  that 
was  suggested.  Pennsylvania  he  thought  had  been  "  tricked  " 
into  adopting  the  Constitution.  "  If  the  other  States  who 
have  adopted  it  have  not  been  tricked,  still  they  were  too 
much  hurried  into  its  adoption.  There  were  very  respecta- 
ble minorities  in  several  of  them,  and  if  reports  be  true,  a 
clear  majority  of  the  people  are  averse  to  it.  If  we  also 
accede,  and  it  should  prove  grievous,  the  peace  and  pros- 
perity of  our  country  [Virginia],  which  wc  all  love,  will  be 
destroyed."  *  Edmund  Randolph  made  the  opening  argu- 
ment on  the  following  day.  He  referred  to  a  portion  of 
George  Mason's  speech  in  these  words :  "  It  is  objected  by 
the  honorable  gentleman  over  the  way,  that  a  republican 
government  is  impracticable  in  an  extensive  territory,  and 
the  extent  of  the  United  States  is  urged  as  a  reason  for  the 
rejection  of  this  Constitution."  And  he  contended  that  if 
the  laws  were  wisely  made  and  executed,  the  extent  of  the 
country  would  be  no  bar  to  the  adoption  of  a  "  good  gov- 
ernment." For  the  definition  of  a  good  government,  how- 
ever, the  factor  of  territory  must  be  taken  into  account, 

*  '•  Debates  of  the  Virginia  Convention,"  Robertson,  p.  55. 


230     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

George  Mason  contended.  A  monarchy,  though  repugnant 
to  the  genius  of  America,  might  be  a  good  government  under 
certain  conditions.  A  republic,  to  be  a  good  government, 
must  be  small,  and  a  union  of  republics  should  be  of  a 
marked  federal  character  to  make  it  secure  of  retaining  its 
freedom.  There  was,  of  course,  no  exact  prototype  of  the 
government  now  proposed,  by  which  the  fathers  could  be 
guided.  And  the  Constitution  had  its  national  as  well  as 
federal  features.  But  Edmund  Randolph  had  objected  just 
as  strongly  as  George  Mason  to  the  "  national "  theories  of 
Hamilton  in  the  Federal  Convention,  and  it  was  to  bring 
back  the  Constitution  from  its  deflections  out  of  the  orbit 
originally  designed  for  it  that  amendments  were  sought  for. 
Edmund  Randolph  in  this  speech  animadverted  severely 
upon  the  legislation  of  Virginia,  meaning  that  his  reflections 
should  hit  Mason  and  Henry,  who  had  been  prominent  as 
its  law-makers.  George  Mason  had  drafted  the  first  land 
law,  and  Randolph  refers  to  complaints  on  this  point. 

Madison  and  George  Nicholas  were  the  other  speakers  at 
this  time.  Madison  at  the  close  of  his  argument  showed  how 
Httle  he  favored  consolidation,  though  he  supported  a  sys- 
tem which  came  so  dangerously  near  it.  He  said  of  the  new 
Constitution  :  **  I  believe  its  tendency  will  be,  that  the  State 
governments  will  counteract  the  general  interest,  and  ulti- 
mately prevail."  *  His  was  indeed  a  short-sighted  political 
wisdom,  as  he  lived  to  discern.  Francis  Corbin,  the  young 
member  of  the  legislature  of  whom  George  Mason  makes 
indulgent  mention  in  his  letter  from  the  Assembly  given  in 
the  last  chapter,  answered  Patrick  Henry.  Ikit  in  spite  of 
Corbin's  compliments  to  the  **  declamatory  talents  "  of  the 
great  orator,  Henry  appears  not  to  have  considered  him  a 
foeman  quite  worthy  of  his  steel.  And  then,  too,  Patrick 
Henry  wished  to  make  the  two-sided  governor  declare  him- 
self at  large,  that  the  opportunity  for  reprisals  might  be  more 
complete.  Ldrd  Chesterfield  amused  himself  with  a  para- 
graph that  appeared  in  one  of  the  London  papers  relating  to 

» Ibid,,  p.  78. 


EDMUND  RANDOLPH  CHANGES  SIDES.  23I 

the  health  of  Charles  Townshend,  who  was  proverbial  for  his 
fickle  changes  of  party :  "  The  Right  Honorable  Charles 
Townshend  has  been  indisposed  of  a  pain  in  his  side,  but  it 
is  not  stated  in  which  side.*'  His  Excellency,  Governor  Ran- 
dolph had  left  the  world  equally  in  doubt  as  to  "  which 
side "  must  be  understood  as  that  of  his  intimate  convic- 
tions, in  the  struggle  going  on.  Patrick  Henry  now  asked 
him  to  continue  his  observations  as  he  wished  to  hear  all  that 
could  be  said  in  defence  of  a  system  he  [Henry]  found  so 
defective.  Randolph  responded  to  the  invitation,  and  in  the 
course  of  his  remarks,  while  on  the  subject  of  direct  taxation, 
he  argued  against  the  "  expedient,  proposed  by  a  gentleman 
whom  I  do  not  now  see  in  the  house  [Mr.  George  Mason] 
.  .  .  that  this  power  shall  be  only  given  to  the  general 
government,  as  an  alternative  after  requisitions  shall  have 
been  refused.**  And  again  he  replied  to  George  Mason,  to 
whom  he  ascribed  the  observation,  "  that  there  could  not  be 
a  fellow-feeling  between  the  national  representatives  and 
their  constituents,  and  that  oppression  must  be  inseparable 
from  their  exercise  of  the  power  of  imposing  taxes.**  Madi- 
son followed  Randolph,  with  a  long  speech,  making  quota- 
tions of  which  Robertson  gives  pnly  the  substance,  a  plan 
which  he  follows  with  a  part  of  the  speech  itself.  Henry 
closed  the  debate  with  a  comprehensive  reply  to  the  argu- 
ments of  the  Federalists,  and  he  took  occasion  to  remind 
"  His  Excellency  **  of  his  former  expressions  of  opinion.  He 
indulged  in  a  little  excusable  irony,  and  caught  up  an  incau- 
tious word  of  Randolph*s  on  which  he  dilated,  much  to  his 
victim's  discomfiture.  Patrick  Henry  concluded  his  speech 
with  an  ultimatum,  under  three  heads,  as  "indispensably 
necessary  *' :  a  bill  of  rights ;  a  "  general  positive  provision 
securing  to  the  States  and  the  people,  every  right  which  was 
not  conceded  to  the  general  government ;  and  that  every 
implication  should  be  done  away.**  * 

The  first  week  of  the  Convention  had  closed  with  Patrick 
Henry*s  speech  of  Saturday.     On  Monday  the  9th  of  June, 

'  /W//.,  p.  114. 


232      LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

"  Henry  and  Mason,  who  had,  according  to  their  usual  habits 
walked  arm  in  arm  from  the  Swan,  were  seen  to  pause  a  few 
moments  at  the  steps  of  the  Academy,  evidently  engaged  in 
consultation,  and  with  difficulty  made  their  way  to  their 
seats  in  the  house/*  *  The  crowd  of  spectators  had  increased 
and  filled  the  floor  and  galleries  to  overflowing.  Henry  rose 
to  conclude  his  unfinished  argument.  He  brought  forward 
a  subject  of  great  interest  to  all  present,  the  question  of  the 
Mississippi  navigation.  Seven  States,  or  the  whole  North, 
as  he  said,  were  willing  to  relinquish  this  river  which  it  was  to 
the  interest  of  the  six  Southern  States  to  retain,  and  under 
the  new  government  the  South  would  be  likely  to  lose  it. 
He  reviewed  the  several  dangers  to  which  it  was  asserted 
Virginia  would  be  liable  if  she  did  not  accept  the  Constitu- 
tion, and  showed  the  fallacy  of  these  assumptions.  And  he 
expatiated  afresh  on  the  objections  against  it  already  ad- 
vanced. General  Henry  Lee  was  the  next  speaker,  and  after 
him  came  the  irate  governor.  The  latter  poured  out  the  vials 
of  his  wrath  on  Patrick  Henry,  and  read  a  portion  of  his 
public  letter  (objecting  to  the  Constitution),  to  prove  that  he 
had  not  been  inconsistent.  There  was  then  a  little  scene 
which  must  have  caused  a  good  deal  of  excitement  in  the 
Convention.  After  Patrick  Henry  had  disavowed  any  inten- 
tion of  giving  offence,  Edmund  Randolph  made  answer,  that 
but  for  this  concession  "he  would  have  made  some  men's 
hair  stand  on  end  by  the  disclosure  of  certain  facts.**  Henry 
asked  him  to  speak  if  he  had  anything  to  disclose,  but  Ran- 
dolph made  no  reply  to  this  challenge,  and  proceeded  further 
in  his  own  justification,  throwing  down  his  letter  on  the 
clerk's  table  to  lie  there  "  for  the  inspection  of  the  curious 
and  malicious.**  He  continued  his  argument,  after  this 
ebullition,  and  concluded  it  on  the  following  day.  Monroe, 
Marshall,  Harrison,  and  Nicholas  were  the  other  speakers  on 
the  loth,  and  the  ball  of  debate  was  tossed  back  and  forth, 
each  side  reiterating  arguments  and  making  citations  to 
strengthen  its  position.     Benjamin  Harrison  was  one  of  the 

*  **  History  of  the  Virginia  Federal  Convention,"  p.  151. 


THE   COMMITTEE   OF  OPPOSITION.  233 

amendment  party,  but  he  only  spoke  in  the  Convention  on 
this  one  occasion,  when  he  ably  seconded  the  position  of 
Mason  and  Henry. 

It  will  be  seen  from  Edmund  Randolph's  remark  in  his 
speech  on  Saturday,  the  7th,  that  George  Mason  was  not  at 
that  time  in  the  Convention.  It  is  not  unreasonable  to 
suppose  that  his  absence  from  his  seat  on  this  day  had  some 
connection  with  the  arrival  in  Richmond  of  Colonel  Oswald, 
of  Philadelphia,  who  brought  pamphlets  and  letters  from 
the  "  Federal  Republican  Society  **  in  New  York  to  the 
leaders  of  the  opposition  in  the  Virginia  Convention.  Madi- 
son reported  the  news  of  this  portentous  event  in  a  letter 
on  Monday  to  his  friend  and  ally,  Alexander  Hamilton,  the 
leader  of  the  Federalists  in  New  York :  "  Oswald  of  Phila- 
delphia came  here  on  Saturday,  and  has  closet  interviews 
with  the  leaders  of  the  opposition."*  On  the  same  day 
Patrick  Henry,  William  Grayson,  and  George  Mason  all 
wrote  letters  to  General  John  Lamb,  Chairman  of  the  New 
York  Society,  to  send  back  by  Colonel  Oswald.  The  Anti- 
federalists  had  not  been  dilatory  in  their  work  of  opposi- 
tion. They  had  already  formulated  in  their  committee,  of 
which  Colonel  Mason  was  chairman,  a  bill  of  rights,  and 
some  of  the  amendments  they  meant  to  bring  forward  in 
the  Convention.  Patrick  Henry  wrote  to  Lamb  that  four 
fifths  of  the  people  in  Virginia  were  opposed  to  the  Consti- 
tution, and  south  of  the  James  River  nine  tenths :  "  And 
yet,  strange  as  it  may  seem,  the  numbers  in  Convention 
appear  equal  on  both  sides,  so  that  the  majority,  which  way 
soever  it  goes,  will  be  small.  The  friends  and  seekers  of 
power  have  with  their  usual  subtlety  wriggled  themselves 
into  the  choice  of  the  people."  In  regard  to  General 
Lamb's  proposition  that  they  should  form  in  Virginia  a 
society  like  the  one  in  New  York,  Henry  adds : 

"  If  they  [the  Federalists]  shall  carry  their  point  and  preclude 
previous  amendments,  which  we  have  ready  to  offer,  it  will  be- 

'  ••  Works  of  Hamilton,'*  John  C.  Hamilton,  vol.  i.,  p.  456. 


234     ^^^^  ^^^  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

come  highly  necessary  to  form  the  society  you  mention.  .  .  . 
Col.  George  Mason  has  agreed  to  act  as  chairman  of  our  republi- 
can society.  His  character  I  need  not  describe.  He  is  every 
way  lit ;  and  we  have  concluded  to  send  you  by  Col.  Oswald  a 
copy  of  the  bill  of  rights,  and  of  the  particular  amendments  we 
intend  to  propose  in  our  Convention.' 


» 1 


William  Grayson  acknowledges  the  letter  sent  him  by 
Colonel  Oswald,  and  says  he  laid  it  the  same  evening  before 
the  "  Committee  of  Opposition,"  and  they  had  "  directed 
their  chairman  to  answer  it  by  Colonel  Oswald.  Some  of  our 
proposed  amendments,"  he  adds,  "  are  finished  in  the  Com- 
mittee; the  others  will  be  forwarded  as  soon  as  agreed 
on."  He  speaks  of  their  affairs  as  suspended  by  a  hair,  and 
that  "  seven  or  eight  dubious  characters,  whose  opinions  are 
not  known,"  will  by  their  decisions  decide  the  important 
question.'  The  following  is  George  Mason's  letter  to  Gen- 
eral Lamb: 

Richmond,  June  9th,  1788. 

Sir: 

I  have  had  the  honor  to  receive  your  letter  dated  the  i8th  of 
May,  in  behalf  of  the  Federal  Republican  Committee  of  New 
York,  upon  the  subject  of  the  government  proposed  by  the  late 
Convention  to  the  respective  States  for  their  adoption,  and  have 
communicated  it  to  several  respectable  gentlemen  of  the  Conven- 
tion now  met  in  this  city,  who  are  opposed  to  the  adoption 
without  previous  amendments.  They  receive  with  pleasure  the 
proposition  of  your  Committee  for  a  free  correspondence  on  the 
subject  of  amendments,  and  have  requested  me  to  transmit  to 
your  Committee  such  as  we  have  agreed  on  as  necessary  for 
previous  adoption. 

Although  there  is  a  general  concurrence  in  the  Convention  of 
this  State  that  amendments  are  necessary,  yet  the  members  are 
so  equally  divided  with  respect  to  the  time  and  manner  of  obtain- 
ing them,  that  it  cannot  now  be  ascertained  whether  the  majority 
will  be  on  our  side  or  not ;  if  it  should  be  so  I  have  no  doubt 
but  that  an  official  communication  will  immediately  take  place 
between  the  Conventions  of  this  State  and  yours. 

*  **  Life  and  Times  of  General  Lamb."  Isaac  Q.  I^ake,  p.  306.  •  Ibid, 


GEORGE  MASON   TO  GENERAL  JOHN  LAMB.  235 

As  the  amendments  proposed  by  the  Convention  of  Massachu- 
setts are  the  first  which  have  been  offered  to  the  public,  and  con- 
tain in  them  many  things  that  are  necessary,  it  is  deemed  proper 
to  make  them  the  basis  of  such  as  may  finally  be  agreed  on  ;  and 
it  may  also  be  proper  to  observe  that  an  Executive  Council  will 
be  necessary,  because  power  and  responsibility  are  two  things 
essential  to  a  good  executive,  the  first  of  which  cannot  be  safely 
given,  nor  the  latter  insured  where  the  legislative  senate  form  a 
part  of  the  Executive.  The  judiciary,  the  exclusive  legislative 
power  over  the  ten  miles  square,  and  the  militia  are  subjects  to 
which  our  attention  will  next  be  turned,  and  we  shall  communi- 
cate the  result  of  our  deliberations  with  all  possible  despatch. 

The  nature  of  the  opposition  here  is  such  that  it  has  not  yet 
taken  any  particular  form,  being  composed  only  of  members  of 
the  Convention  who  meet  to  prepare  such  amendments  as  they 
deem  necessary  to  be  offered  to  the  Convention.  If  it  should 
hereafter  become  necessary  to  assume  one,  it  is  hoped  that 
system  and  order  will  everywhere  appear  suitable  to  the  import- 
ance and  dignity  of  the  cause.  In  the  meantime  it  is  recom- 
mended to  communicate  with  you,  under  cover  to  Capt.  Jacob 
Reed,  Junr.,  of  Queen  street,  New  York,  in  order  to  prevent  any 
interruption  that  curiosity  might  give.  We  approve  of  the  pre- 
caution, and  also  advise  that  Mr.  George  Fleming,  merchant  of 
this  city,  be  made  the  instrument  of  safe  conveyance  on  your 
part. 

I  have  the  honor  to  be,  Sir, 

Your  most  obedient  and  humble  servant, 

G.  Mason. 
Honorable  John  Lamb,  Esq  : 

Chairman  of  the  Federal  Republican  Committee 

in  New  York.* 

From  the  4th  to  the  nth  of  June,  George  Mason's  voice 
was  not  heard  in  the  Convention,  but  he  had  been  busy  in 
the  Committee  of  Opposition,  preparing  the  bill  of  rights 
and  amendments.  He  had  left  it  to  Patrick  Henry  to  spe^ 
for  the  cause  while  he  was  occupied  in  writing  for  it.  J  On 
the  I  ith,  which  was  Wednesday,  he  rose  after  Madison  and 

'  Lamb  Papers,  New  York  Historical  Society. 


J 


236      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

made  a  long  and  careful  reply  to  the  arguments  of  the 
Federalists.  Grigsby  says  here  in  allusion  to  the  circum- 
stance that  Mason  succeeded  Madison  : 

''  It  has  been  remarked  by  one  of  the  most  celebrated  orators 
of  the  present  age,  that  it  is  an  advantage  to  a  speaker  of  the  first 
order  of  ability,  and  to  such  only,  to  succeed  the  delivery  of  a 
first-rate  speech,  that  the  attention  of  the  audience  is  fixed 
firmly  on  the  subject  in  debate,  and  that  there  is  a  craving  for  a 
reply.  In  this  respect.  Mason  could  not  have  been  more  for- 
tunate, and  in  another  not  less  so  ;  for  the  speech  which  had  just 
been  delivered  was  addressed  to  the  reason  and  not  to  the 
passions  of  the  House,  and  the  eminent  perfection  of  Mason 
rested  on  his  logical  power,  in  his  knowledge  of  the  British  pol- 
ity, and  in  his  experience  as  a  statesman."  ' 

He  remarked  first  on  the  propriety  at  the  present  juncture 
of  discussing  the  Constitution  at  large  instead  of  confining 
the  debate  to  a  single  clause.  He  maintained  that  the  case 
of  Great  Britain's  representation,  as  cited  by  George  Nich- 
olas, was  not  applicable  to  the  United  States.  Yet,  he 
asked,  in  what  respect  was  the  American  system  superior  as 
Nicholas  declared,  when  Great  Britain  with  a  territory  ten 
times  smaller  had  550  members  in  Parliament,  while  the 
United  States  had  but  65  in  Congress?  He  spoke  of 
the  ineffectiveness  of  the  clause  restraining  members  of 
Congress  from  holding  office.  There  is  a  hiatus  in  the 
report  of  Mason's  speech  here,  as  Robertson  says  he  spoke 
too  low  to  be  heard.  He  is  found,  however,  soon  after,  to  be 
dwelling  upon  the  "  unconditional  power  of  taxation  "  given 
to  the  government,  and  fortifying  his  argument  against  it  by 
examples  of  its  power  for  evil.  He  then  read  a  letter  of 
Robert  Morris  to  show  the  sort  of  taxes  that  were  already 
in  agitation.  The  next  point  made  was  the  need  for  a  bill 
of  rights,  as  a  check  to  the  general  government  and  a  safe- 
guard to  the  people  of  the  State,  threatened  in  their  reserved 
powers  by  the  second  clause  of  the  sixth  article.     George 

»  ••  History  of  the  Virginia  Federal  Convention,"  p.  iSS. 


TAXATION  AND  REPRESENTATION,  237 

Mason  in  speaking  of  the  small  representation  of  Virginia  in 
Congress,  while  advocating  the  democratic,  as  opposed  to 
the  aristocratic  theory  of  representative  government,  made 
an  allusion  to  the  famous  phrase  of  John  Adams.  He  said 
the  ten  members  from  Virginia  would  be  chosen,  "  if  not] 
wholly,  yet  mostly  from  the  higher  order  of  the  people^ 
from  the  great,  the  wealthy,  the  well-born — the  well-bm 
Mr.  Chairmarr,  that  aristocratic  idol,  that  flattering  idea,  th^t 
exotic  plant  which  has  been  lately  imported  from  the  pon:s 
of  Great  Britain,  and  planted  in  the  luxuriant  soil  of  this 
country.*'  John  Adams  while  in  England  had  written  and 
published  the  first  volume  of  his  "  Defence  of  the  American 
Constitutions,'*  against  the  strictures  of  Turgot.  The  book 
came  out  during  the  session  of  the  Federal  Convention,  and 
was  much  read  by  the  members,  and  was  believed  to  have 
influenced  them  in  favor  of  a  strong  central  government. 
In  the  preface  and  in  the  conclusion,  he  seemed  to  advocate 
a  more  aristocratic  government  than  suited  the  romantic 
republicanism  of  the  American  patriots  of  the  day.  j 

George  Mason  then   referred   to   a  statement  made  by' 
Nicholas  in  regard  to  the  increase  of  representation : 

''The  worthy  gentleman  says  that  the  number  must  be 
increased,  because  representation  and  taxation  are  in  proportion, 
and  that  one  cannot  be  increased  without  increasing  the  other, 
nor  decreased  without  decreasing  the  other.  Let  us  examine 
the  weight  of  this  argument.  If  the  proportion  of  each  State 
equally  and  ratably  diminishes,  the  words  of  the  Constitution 
[one  for  every  30,000]  will  be  as  much  satisfied  as  if  it  had  been 
increased  in  the  same  manner,  without  any  reduction  of  the 
taxes.  Let  us  illustrate  it  familiarly.  Virginia  has  ten  repre- 
sentatives ;  Maryland  has  six.  Virginia  will  have  to  pay  a  sum 
in  proportion  greater  than  Maryland,  as  ten  to  six.  Suppose 
Virginia  reduced  to  five  and  Maryland  to  three.  The  relative 
proportion  of  money,  paid  by  each,  will  be  the  same  as  before  ; 
and  yet  the  honorable  gentleman  said,  that  if  this  did  not 
convince  us,  he  would  give  up.  I  am  one  of  those  unhappy  men 
who  cannot  be  amused  with  assertions.     A  man  from  the  dead 


238     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON, 

might  frighten  me  ;  but  I  am  sure  that  he  could  not  convince  me 
without  using  better  arguments  than  I  have  yet  heard.  The 
same  gentleman  showed  us  that  though  the  Northern  States  had 
a  most  decided  majority  against  us,  yet  the  increase  of  popu- 
lation among  us  would,  in  the  course  of  years,  change  it  in  our 
favor.  A  very  sound  argument  indeed^  that  we  should  cheerfully 
bum  ourselves  to  death  in  hopes  of  a  joyful  and  happy  resurrection  ! 

In  the  course  of  his  remarks,  after  picturing  Holland  with 
its  free  institutions  in  contrast  to  Spain  in  her  poverty,  he 
added  :  "They  tell  us,  that  if  we  be  powerful  and  respecta- 
ble abroad,  we  shall  have  liberty  and  happiness  at  home. 
L«t  us  secure  that  liberty,  that  happiness  first,  and  we  shall 
then  be  respectable."  Then  followed  another  caustic  obser- 1 
vation,  one  of  those  touches,  of  ironic  humor  for  which  the  \ 
speaker  was  famous : 

"  I  have  some  acquaintance  with  a  great  many  characters  who 
favor  this  government,  their  connections,  their  conduct,  their 
political  principles,  and  a  number  of  other  circumstances.  There 
are  a  great  many  wise  and  good  men  among  them.  But  when  I 
look  round  the  number  of  my  acquaintance  in  Virginia,  the 
country  wherein  I  was  bom,  and  have  lived  so  many  years,  and 
observe  who  are  the  warmest  and  the  most  zealous  friends  to  this 
new  government,  it  makes  me  think  of  the  story  of  the  cat  trans- 
formed into  a  fine  lady — forgetting  her  transformation — and 
happening  to  see  a  rat,  she  could  not  restrain  herself,  but  sprang 
upon  it  out  of  the  chair." 

Of  the  desirableness  of  a  general  government  there  was 
no  doubt,  George  Mason  continued.     But,  he  added  : 

*'  I  hope  that  it  is  not  to  the  name,  but  to  the  blessings  of] 
union  that  we  are  attached.     .     .     .     The  security  of  our  liberty! 
and  happiness  is  the  object  we  ought  to  have  in  view  in  wishing! 
to  establish  the  union.     If  instead  of  securing  these,  we  endanger 
them,  the  name  of  union  will  be  but  a  trivial  consolation." 

Difficulties  with  Maryland  about  the  Potomac,  the  western 
lands  of  Virginia,  the  magnitude  of  her  debts,  were  pleas  put 


I 


LIBERTIES  OF   THE  PEOPLE  IMPERILLED.  239 

forward  by  Edmund  Randolph  as  reasons  for  joining  the  new 
government.  Of  the  first,  George  Mason  said  he  could 
speak  with  authority,  having  been  one  of  the  commissioners 
to  form  a  compact  with  Maryland,  and  he  knew  of  no  cause 
of  alarm  there.  As  to  the  second,  he  believed,  if  the  Con- 
stitution were  to  be  adopted  without  amendments,  the 
Indiana  Company  would  drive  out  the  settlers  between  the 
Alleghany  and  Blue  Ridge,  though  their  rights  and  title 
had  been  confirmed  by  the  Virginia  Assembly.  George 
Mason  proved  to  be  a  prophet  here,  as  to  the  action  of  the 
Indiana  Company,  as  they  brought  suit  against  Virginia  in 
the  federal  court,  after  the  adoption  of  the  Constitution.  Of 
the  third  plea.  Mason  said  :  **  And  shall  we,  because  involved 
in  debts,  take  less  care  of  our  rights  and  liberties  ?  Shall  we 
abandon  them,  because  we  owe  money  which  we  cannot 
immediately  pay  ?  Will  this  system  enable  us  to  pay  our 
debts  and  lessen  our  difficulties  ?  Perhaps  the  new  govern- 
ment possesses  some  secret,  some  powerful  means  of  turning 
everything  to  gold.  It  has  been  called  by  one  gentleman 
the  philosopher*s  stone.  The  comparison  was  a  pointed  one, 
at  least  in  this,  that,  on  the  subject  of  producing  gold  they 
will  be  both  equally  delusive  and  fallacious.*'  Colonel 
Mason  then  proceeded  to  give  Randolph  a  home  thrust  on 
the  subject  of  his  change  of  front : 

*'  My  honorable  colleague  in  the  late  Convention  seems  to 
raise  phantoms,  and  to  show  a  singular  skill  in  exorcisms,  to 
terrify  and  compel  us  to  take  the  new  government,  with  all  its 
sins  and  dangers.  I  know  that  he  once  saw  as  great  danger  in  it 
as  I  do.  What  has  happened  since  to  alter  his  opinion  ?  If  any- 
thing, I  know  it  not.  But  the  Virginia  legislature  has  occasioned 
it,  by  postponing  the  matter.  The  Convention  had  met  in 
June,  instead  of  March  or  April.  The  liberty  or  misery  of 
millions  yet  unborn  are  deeply  concerned  in  our  decision.  When 
this  is  the  case,  I  cannot  imagine  that  the  short  period  between 
the  last  of  September  and  first  of  June  ought  to  make  any 
difiFerence."  * 

*  Appendix  Hi. 


240     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

Grigsby  explains  the  story  of  the  cat  and  the  fine  lady  as 
having  reference  to  a  class  of  men  in  Virginia  favorable  to 
the  new  Constitution,  who  had  been  disaffected  throughout 
the  Revolution,  who  had  "  hung  on  the  rear  of  the  friends  of 
freedom,  and  sought  to  obstruct  their  progress  when  they 
could  effect  their  object  safely  and  without  suspicion." 
From  their  high  positions  and  wide  family  connections  it 
was  difficult  to  assail  them,  yet  Mason  had  the  courage  to 
denounce  their  course. 

Henry  Lee  of  Westmoreland,  a  gallant  and  skilful  soldier, 
but  no  match  for  George  Mason  in  statesmanship,  censured 
"  the  honorable  gentleman  last  up  **  for  his  endeavor  "  to 
draw  our  attention  from  the  merits  of  the  question,  by  jocose 
observations  and  satirical  allusions."  Grigsby  thinks  it 
evident  from  Lee's  remarks,  that  the  story  of  the  cat  was 
**  not  the  only  piece  of  fun  with  which  Mason  relieved  one 
of  his  ablest  arguments,"  but,  he  adds,  "  there  is  not  a 
shadow  of  humor  in  any  other  part  of  the  reported  speech  " 
[?].  But  to  continue  General  Lee's  remarks  :  **  He  [Mason] 
ought  to  know  that  ridicule  is  not  the  test  of  truth.  Does 
he  imagine  that  he  that  can  raise  the  loudest  laugh  is  the 
soundest  reasoner?  Sir,  the  judgments  and  not  the  risibility 
of  gentlemen  are  to  be  consulted."  He  also  found  fault 
with  Mason  for  showing  the  letter  of  Robert  Morris,  whose 
proposed  scheme  of  taxation  he  professed  to  consider  as 
merely  the  opinion  of  a  private  gentleman,  though  Morris 
was  the  financial  agent  of  Congress.  But  the  same  princi- 
ple," he  added,  "  has  also  governed  the  gentleman  when  he 
mentions  the  expressions  of  another  private  gentleman — 
the  well-born — that  our  federal  representatives  are  to  be 
chosen  from  the  higher  orders  of  the  people — from  the  welU 
born.  Is  there  a  single  expression  like  this  in  the  Constitu-j 
tion?  .  .  .  This  insinuation  is  totally  unwarrantable. 
Is  it  proper  that  the  Constitution  should  be  thus  attacked 
with  the  opinions  of  every  private  gentleman  ?  I  hope  we 
shall  have  no  more  of  such  groundless  assertions.  Raising 
a  laugh,  sir,  will  not  prove  the  merits,  nor  expose  the  defects 


SPEECH  OF  WILLIAM  GRA  YSON.  24 1 

of  this  system  '*  *  Evidently  the  Convention  had  shown  its 
appreciation  of  Mason's  shafts  of  satire.  And  they  must 
in  turn  have  been  amused  by  this  solemn  rebuke  of  his 
levity  administered  to  such  a  master  of  sound  reasoning  as 
George  Mason. 

William  Grayson  made  his  first  speech  in  the  Convention 
at  this  time,  concluding  his  argument  on  the  following  day, 
and  his  voice  was  a  great  accession  to  the  strength  of  the 
opposition.  He  too  ridiculed  the  imaginary  dangers  sug- 
gested by  Edmund  Randolph  as  the  alternative  of  rejection. 
And  he  saw  evils  in  a  Constitution  where  the  executive  was 
*'  fettered  in  some  parts,  and  as  unlimited  in  others  as  a 
Roman  dictator/*  and  where  there  was  *'  an  inequality  of 
representation  and  want  of  responsibility  **  in  the  legislature. 
Grayson  thought,  with  Mason  and  Henry,  that  the  power  of^ 
direct  taxation  should  remain  with  the  States :  "  Give  u] 
this  and  you  give  up  everything,  as  it  is  the  highest  act  </f 
sovereignty ;  surrender  up  this  inestimable  jewel,  and  y< 
throw  a  pearl  away  richer  than  all  your  tribe."  And  he 
made  the  prophecy  that  **  this  government  will  operate  as  a 
faction  of  seven  States  to  oppress  the  rest  of  the  Union." 
In  the  further  consideration  of  this  subject  Grayson  said : 

"  An  observation  came  from  an  honorable  gentleman  (Mr. 
Mason)  when  speaking  of  the  propriety  of  the  general  govern- 
ment exercising  this  power,  that  according  to  the  rules  and  doc- 
trine of  representation,  the  thing  was  entirely  impracticable.  I 
agreed  with  him  in  sentiments.  I  waited  to  hear  the  answer 
from  the  admirers  of  the  new  Constitution.  What  was  the 
answer  ?  Gentlemen  were  obliged  to  give  up  the  point  with  re- 
spect to  general  uniform  taxes.  They  have  the  candor  to 
acknowledge  that  taxes  on  slaves  would  not  affect  the  Eastern 
States,  and  that  taxes  on  fish  or  pot-ash  would  not  affect  the 
Southern  States.  They  are  then  reduced  to  this  dilemma.  In 
order  to  support  this  part  of  the  system,  they  are  obliged  to  con- 
trovert the  first  maxims  of  representation.  The  best  writers  on  ^ 
this  subject,  lay  it  down  as  a  fundamental  principle,  that  he  who 
lays  a  tax,  should  bear  his  proportion  of  paying  it."  4 

'  "  Debates  of  the  Virginia  Convention,  '  Robertson,  p.  197  . 
Vol.  II— 16 


4^0     I  ll'ff  ANn  f:OMMHf;/'OA/fJ/iMC£  OF  CEOkCE  MAM/f. 


\\\^  h\S\h^  %\i^^^Vn%  on  the  1 2th  were  Pendleton  and 
MmHIh/hi  <or  IIm*  ('on<iflfiitlofi  and  Henry  in  reply.  The  lat- 
\h\  itHlfl  *«f  tiiNiitlon  }  "  'Miln  government  subjects  everythinff 
Im  IIm*  Nffilhf'tti  Miiijorlfy.  In  there  not  then  a  settled  pur- 
|«HM»'  Im  \\\%kV  Hii«  Smilherii  Interest?  We  thus  put  un- 
ImimmiIimI  |Miwt»i  iivn  our  property  in  hands  not  having  a 
iHMHUHM  lMli»i(ittl  whh  UN."  The  navigation  of  the  Missis- 
MlppI  wiiN  imimIm  Hm*  lhrn«r  of  diNCussion  for  the  following 
\\\\\  And  (liMUMid  l.iM'.  Monroci  Grayson,  Henry,  Nicholas, 
Ut^Hd^lpht  iMul  roihtu  idl  Npoko.  Mr.  Corbin  had  scarcely 
u^\^M^^vt\n'd  hU  np^HHlu  however,  when  a  violent  storm  arose 
wUuh  u^\\\peUed  \\\\\\  to  cUvHc  abruptly,  and  the  Convention 
Uh>  ^\  i\\>i>^\^u\e\t  \\\\  tho  \l<^v.*  rho  subject  of  debate  on  the 
\  \0\  \N^^  \MW  \vt  >ii\Mt  iuteiVHt,  us  it  AtK\rtcd  Virginia  and  the 
N\U\v>v  Sn^v^iUx  iMV\<  >\h  .^  »vx\dt  ot  the  eKH|uencc  and  reasoning 
N^  ^H^^  \\\Ut>s>e\s^hxts\\u  tUedun^vrxxf  U>singlhc  Mississippi^ 
^>^\  N^'s^^  >M  t^^^  t>M\\t\SH\  \tcU^Ates  tv^  the  Cv>:\\>aition  from 
K>*^^vn\\  nnMns^  \>*^h  Ihe  \^^^^vv<iti>N;v*  rh<N>doric  Bland. 
nv*x  \>^   \V   V-^v^n^^^vaUx^v  >fct\^W  xv*,  this  vijiv  to  Arthur 

^x,s    ^  \  Vn'^vv  ^*^^'^*'  "^  VNxV^  >••  -^^x^r  "t  ■  vc   i*t  iJnog?  ti> 


V  vv      %V    A*   "V  X  '^^^    "-v^ftV**  \  :  -."XV*^     **^:? 

>r  *X,^X*        *»        •"»  N  •        ^XNl^^-***-  '  ;  "•■^•liv        -.sS^-V      TV,         -        t^->r      I^3Bt£ 


COLONEL  BLAND    TO  ARTHUR  LEE,  243 

shore  of  liberty.  I  have  but  one  ray  of  hope,  and  that  arises  from 
an  observation  that  they  are  yet  in  perfectly  good  humour  with 
each  other.  I  have  as  yet  sat  as  a  speechless  spectator,  nor  shall 
I  be  induced  to  alter  that  character  but  as  a  mediator,  and  with 
a  view  of  concentrating  the  two  parties  now  (after  twelve  days' 
session)  almost  equally  divided  ;  each  side  boasting  by  turns  of  a 
majority  of  from  3  to  8,  on  the  general  question,  of  adopting  or 
rejecting,  although  I  really  at  this  time  think  there  is  a  decided 
majority  for  anterior  amendments,  that  is  who  do  not  think  it 
prudent  to  mount  a  high-blooded,  fiery  steed,  without  a  bridle. 
The  amendments  which  will  be  proposed  will  contain  simple 
propositions  guarding  the  rights  of  the  States,  &c.  .  .  .  The 
strongest  efforts  are  made  here  to  inculcate  the  absolute  necessity 
of  posterior  amendments,  or  unconditional  submission,  for  fear 
of  losing,  as  it  is  called,  the  government,  and  strong  dispositions 
are  shown  to  precipitate  the  Convention  into  that  measure,  but 
hitherto  the  fear  of  miscarrying  altogether,  has  restrained  the 
gentlemen  on  the  side  of  the  new  Constitution. 

•  •••«•••• 

"  We  object  not  against  any  powers  which  shall  not  be  hurtful. 
That  the  government  shall  want  no  aids  for  its  own  support  or 
execution,  provided  that  such  restraints  shall  be  imposed  upon  it 
as  shall  support  and  ensure  the  State  privileges,  and  the  liberty 
of  the  individual  against  oppression.  We  have  yet  proceeded  no 
farther  in  the  discussion  than  the  article  of  direct  taxation,  on 
which  point  they  have  collected  all  their  force,  and  I  think  they 
have  left  hitherto  the  advantage  considerably  on  our  side." 

Colonel  Bland  then  tells  of  a  duel  that  had  just  taken 
place  in  Richmond,  but  the  principals  were  not  members  of 
the  Convention.     He  adds  : 

"  I  mention  this  to  show  you  that  the  heats  have  not  yet  entered 
that  body,  although  the  thunders  roll,  and  the  lightnings  flash 
every  day,  both  in  the  natural  and  political  atmosphere.  [There 
had  been  danger  of  a  duel,  however,  between  Henry  and  Ran- 
dolph.] Our  chief-magistrate  has  at  length  taken  his  party,  and 
appears  to  be  reprobated  by  the  honest  of  both  sides,  but  this  is 
too  precious  a  morsel  to  be  left  out.     Although  lukewarm,  he 


244     ^^^^  ^^^  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

has  openly  declared  for  posterior  amendments,  or  in  other  words, 
unconditional  submission." ' 

On  the  evening  of  the  13th  Madison  wrote  his  version  of 
affairs  to  Washington,  from  the  standpoint  of  federalism. 

"  Appearances  at  present  are  less  favorable  than  at  the  date  of 
my  last.  Our  progress  is  slow,  and  every  advantage  is  taken  of 
the  delay  to  work  on  the  local  prejudices  of  particular  sets  of 
members.  British  debts,  the  Indiana  claim,  and  the  Mississippi 
are  the  principal  topics  of  private  discussion  and  intrigue,  as 
well  as  of  public  declamation.  .  .  .  The  business  is  in  the 
most  ticklish  state  that  can  be  imagined.  .  .  .  Oswald  of 
Philadelphia  has  been  here  with  letters  for  the  anti-federal  leaders 
from  New  York,  and  probably  Philadelphia.  He  staid  a  very 
short  time  here  during  which  he  was  occasionally  closeted  with 
H-y,  M-s-n,  &c.' 


»*  s 


On  th^  14th  of  June  the  president  was  ill  and  unable  to 
attend  the  Convention,  and  John  Tyler,  an  Antifederalist, 
was  unanimously  elected  vice-president  to  preside  during 
the  inability  of  the  executive  officer.  The  subject  of  the 
Mississippi  was  postponed,  the  Convention  deciding  to  dis- 
cuss the  Constitution  clause  by  clause.  But  William  Gray- 
son had  something  to  say  on  the  question  of  the  great  river 
before  the  matter  was  dropped.  He  thought  its  possession 
deeply  concerned  the  Southern  States.  Without  it  there 
could  be  no  expansion  westward.  And  he  reiterated  his 
argument  as  to  the  "  national  contest " — that  is,  whether 
one  part  of  the  continent  should  govern  the  other.  "  The 
Northern  States  have  the  majority  and  will  endeavor  to  re- 
tain it.  This  is  therefore  a  contest  for  dominion,  for  empire. 
I  apprehend  that  God  and  nature  have  intended,  from  the 
extent  of  territory  and  fertility  of  soil,  that  the  weight  of 
population  should  be  on  this  side  of  the  continent.  At 
present,  for  various  reasons,  it  is  on  the  other  side." "     The 

*  **  Life  of  Arthur  Lee,"  Richard  H.  I^ce,  vol.  ii.,  p.  337. 

•  "  Writings  of  Madison,"  vol.  i.,  p.  399. 


s  «« 


Debates  of  the  Virginia  Convention/'  Roberston. 


POWER  OF  CONGRESS  OVER    THE  MILITIA.  245 

third,  fourth,  fifth,  sixth,  and  seventh  sections  of  the  first 
article  were  read  and  commented  on,  Tyler,  Monroe,  Henry, 
and  Grayson  urging  objections ;  Randolph,  Nicholas,  and 
Madison  making  reply.  After  the  reading  of  the  eighth 
section  George  Mason  made  a  speech  on  the  power  of  Con- 
gress over  the  militia.  He  wished  "  such  an  amendment  as 
this — that  the  militia  of  any  State  should  not  be  marched 
beyond  the  limits  of  the  adjoining  State  ;  and  if  it  be  neces- 
sary to  draw  them  from  one  end  of  the  continent  to  the 
other,  I  wish  such  a  check  as  the  consent  of  the  State  legis- 
lature to  be  provided."  He  was  averse  to  a  standing  army, 
and  thought  the  militia  the  safeguard  of  the  state.  Congress 
was  to  have  the  power  to  arm  and  organize  the  militia,  but 
they  might  neglect  to  do  this,  and  Colonel  Mason  wished 
that  there  should  be  an  express  declaration  that  the  State 
governments  might  arm  and  discipline  them,  in  case  the 
general  government  neglected  this  duty.  He  also  thought 
the  militia  should  never  be  subject  to  martial  law  but  in  time 
of  war.*  The  discussion  of  this  subject  was  continued  by 
Madison,  Henry,  C.  Clay,  Nicholas,  and  Randolph.  George 
Mason,  after  reading  to  the  Convention  the  sixteenth  clause 
of  this  eighth  section,  maintained  "that  it  included  the  power 
of  annexing  punishments,  and  establishing  necessary  disci- 
pline," and  therefore  most  ignominious  punishments  might  be 
inflicted  by  Congress,  on  the  worthiest  citizens.  The  speaker 
then  reverted  to  the  subject  of  representation  as  inadequate, 
which  was  "  a  conclusive  reason  for  granting  no  powers  to 
the  government,  but  such  as  were  absolutely  indispensable, 
and  these  to  be  most  cautiously  guarded."  On  the  power 
of  impeachment,  of  which  he  entertained  great  suspicions, 
he  said,  "  after  a  treaty  manifestly  repugnant  to  the  interests 
of  the  country  was  made,"  how  was  the  Senate  to  be  pun- 
ished ?  "  The  House  of  Representatives  were  to  impeach 
them.  The  senators  were  to  try  themselves.  If  a  majority 
of  them  were  guilty  of  the  crime  [of  bribery  and  corruption] 
would  they  pronounce  themselves  guilty  ?    Yet  this  is  called 

*  Appendix  iii. 


246      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON, 


responsibility/'  Referring  to  the  ultimate  power  given 
Congress  over  elections,  he  was  called  to  order  by  George 
Nicholas  for  leaving  the  section  under  discussion,  but  was 
allowed  to  proceed :  "  He  was  of  opinion  that  the  control 
over  elections  tended  to  destroy  responsibility."  He  could 
see  no  good  reason  for  it  and  thought  it  was  dangerous: 
"  I  have  no  power  which  any  other  person  can  take  from  me. 
I  have  no  right  of  representation,  if  they  can  take  it  from 
me.  I  say,  therefore,  that  Congress  may,  by  this  claim,  take 
away  the  right  of  representation,  or  render  it  nugatory, 
despicable,  or  oppressive."  After  some  further  argument 
on  this  point.  Colonel  Mason  took  notice  of  a  clause  in  the 
fifth  section,  on  publishing  the  proceedings  of  Congress,  and 
he  urged  that  the  words  "  from  time  to  time  "  should  be 
replaced  by  others  less  ambiguous.  The  Confederation  had 
provided  that  their  journal  should  be  published  monthly, 
with  certain  exceptions.  Here  was  an  additional  want  of 
responsibility  in  the  new  government.  In  conclusion.  Colo- 
nel Mason  urged  that  the  provision  regarding  adjournment 
was  objectionable.  "  Neither  house  can  adjourn  without 
the  consent  of  the  other  for  more  than  three  days.  The 
Senate  might  have  it  in  their  power  to  worry  the  House 
into  a  compliance  with  their  wishes,  by  refusing  to  adjourn, 
and  they  could  have  no  objection  to  long  sessions,  as  they 
were  elected  for  six  years,  and  would  probably  make  their 
homes  in  the  Federal  city."  * 

The  eighth  section  was  still  under  consideration  on  Mon- 
day, the  i6th,  and  George  Mason  spoke  seven  times  on  this 
day.  After  a  speech  by  Patrick  Henry,  Madison  answered 
him,  and .  concluded  by  having  the  acts  of  the  Assembly 
.read,  which  provided  for  calling  out  the  militia.  Colonel 
Mason  asked  for  what  purpose  they  were  read.  He  thought 
"  they  militated  against  the  cession  of  this  power  to  Con- 
gress, because  the  State  governments  could  call  forth  the 
militia  when  necessary,  so  as  to  compel  a  submission  to  the 
laws ;  and  as  they  were  competent  to  it,  Congress  ought  not 


THE    TEN  MILES  SQUARE.  247 

to  have  the  power.*'  He  was  not  satisfied  with  the  explana- 
tion that  General  Lee  had  given  of  the  word  organization. 
The  latter  maintained  that  it  did  not  include  the  infliction 
of  punishments.  Whereas  George  Mason  insisted  that 
organizing  and  disciplining  the  militia  embraced  the  power 
of  inflicting  punishments,  which  might  be  made  severe  and 
ignominious.  It  was  said  the  militia  would  only  be  subject 
to  martial  law  when  in  actual  service.  But  what  was  there 
to  hinder  Congress  from  inflicting  it  always?  Madison  re- 
plied, and  the  subject  was  discussed  by  Henry,  Corbin, 
Grayson,  and  Marshall.  George  Mason  said  it  had  been 
asked  who  were  the  militia,  if  they  were  not  the  people  of 
the  country.  He  thought  they  did  at  this  time  consist  of 
the  whole  people,  but  they  might  at  some  future  period  be 
confined  to  the  lower  and  middle  classes,  under  the  new 
government.  Then  ignominious  punishments  and  heavy 
fines  might  be  expected.  Discriminating  laws  might  be 
made  by  Congress  exempting  its  members  and  others  from 
militia  duty.  George  Nicholas  professed  to  find  an  incon- 
sistency in  the  propositions  severally  advanced  by  William 
Grayson  and  George  Mason,  and  asserted  that  they  both 
opposed  the  power  given  Congress  on  "  contradictory  prin- 
ciples." Mason  replied  "  that  he  was  totally  misunderstood. 
The  contrast  between  his  friend's  objection  and  his  was  im- 
proper. His  friend  had  mentioned  the  propriety  of  having 
select  militia,  like  those  of  Great  Britain^  who  should  be 
more  thoroughly  exercised  than  the  militia  at  large  could 
possibly  be.  But  //r,  himself,  had  not  spoken  of  a  selection 
of  militia,  but  of  the  exemption  of  the  highest  classes  of  the 
people  from  militia  service ;  which  would  justify  apprehen- 
sions of  some  ignominious  punishments."  The  opponents 
of  the  Constitution  all  feared  the  power  given  Congress  over  . 
the  federal  district,  and  George  Mason  spoke  on  the  subject 
at  this  time  : 

"  This  ten  miles  square  may  set  at  defiance  the  laws  of  the  sur-, 
rounding  States,  and  may,  like  the  custom  of  the  superstitious  1 
days  of  our  ancestors,  become  the  sanctuary  of  the  blackest 


24S     UFE  AMD  COMMESPOyDEMCE  OF  CEOMCE  MASOBt, 


...  If  an  J  of  their  [the  Federal  gorenusent's] 
or  creatures  should  attempt  to  oppress  the  people,  or  shoold 
actaall J  perpetrate  the  blackest  deed,  he  has  wothhig  to  do  but 
get  into  the  ten  miles  square.  .  .  .  It  is  an  ipcontrorertiblc 
axiom,  that,  when  the  dangers  that  maj  arise  from  the  mkmse  are 
greater  than  the  benefits  that  may  result  from  the  use,  the  power 
ought  to  be  withheld." 

Such  he  conceived  to  be  the  case  here.  And,  alluding  to 
a  rcmarlc  of  Edmund  Randolph,  he  added  : 

**  We  are  told  bjr  the  honorable  gentleman  that  Hc^land  has  its 
Hague.  I  confess  I  am  at  a  loss  to  know  what  inference  he  could 
draw  from  that  obserration.  This  b  the  place  where  the  deputies 
of  the  United  Provinces  meet  to  transact  the  public  business^ 
But  I  ^  not  recollect  that  thej  have  any  exclusive  jurisdiction 
whatever  in  that  place,  but  are  subject  to  the  laws  of  the  province 
in  which  the  Hague  is.  To  what  purpose  the  gendeman  men- 
tioned that  Holland  has  its  Hague  I  cannot  see." 

George  Mason  thought  that  Congress  should  only  have 
exclusive  power  as  regarded  the  police  and  good  govern- 
ment of  the  place. 

Of  the  last,  or  ^  sweeping  clause/*  as  it  was  termed,  of  the 
eighth  section,  the  Antifederalists  had  no  opinion  whatever. 
George  Mason  replied  to  Madison  and  Pendleton  on  this 
head :  "  Gentlemen  say  there  is  no  new  power  given  by  this 
clause.  Is  there  anything  in  this  Constitution  which  secures 
to  the  States  the  powers  which  are  said  to  be  retained  ?  Will 
powers  remain  to^the  States  which  are  not  expressly  guarded 
and  reserved  "  ?  He  then  stated  an  imaginary  case,  not  an 
impossible  one,  of  oppression  arising  under  powers  exercised 
by  the  federal  government,  and  protests  being  made  by 
public  writers  against  such  misgovcmment.  Could  not  Con- 
gress call  this  encouraging  sedition,  and  lay  restrictions  on 
the  liberty  of  the  press  ?  Here  Colonel  Mason  anticipated 
exactly  what  took  place  in  the  sedition  law  of  the  second 
administration.  As  with  the  liberty  of  the  press,  he  con- 
tinued, so  with  the  trial  by  jury  and  other  personal  rights. 


1 


THE  ''SWEEPING  CLAUSE."  249 


He  then  referred  to  the  second  of  the  Articles  of  Confedera- 
tion "  reserving  to  the  States  respectively  every  power,  juris- 
diction, and  right,  not  expressly  delegated  to  the  United 
States.  This  clause  has  never  been  complained  of,  but 
approved  by  all.  Why  not,  then,  have  a*  similar  clause  in 
this  Constitution,  in  which  it  is  the  more  indispensably 
necessary  than  in  the  Confederation,  because  of  the  great 
augmentation  of  power  vested  in  the  former  ?  "  At  the  con- 
clusion of  his  remarks,  Patrick  Henry  suggested  that  the 
Bill  of  Rights  be  read  to  the  Convention  from  the  eighth  to 
the  thirteenth  article.  George  Nicholas  then  spoke  in  de- 
fence of  the  Constitution  as  it  stood,  and  was  followed  in 
reply  by  Colonel  Mason.  He  still  thought  the  amendment 
he  had  proposed  was  necessary.  jThe  people  of  Virginia 
had  reserved  certain  rights  when  they  had  formed  their 
government,  and  he  asked  : 

"  Why  should  it  not  be  so  in  this  Constitution  ?  Was  it  because 
we  were  more  substantially  represented  in  it  than  in  the  State 
government  ?  If  in  the  State  government,  where  the  people  were 
substantially  and  fully  represented,  it  was  necessary  that  the  great 
rights  of  human  nature  should  be  secure  from  the  encroachments 
of  the  legislature,  he  asked  if  it  was  not  more  necessary  in  this  gov- 
ernment, where  they  were  but  inadequately  represented  ?  .  .  .  He 
could  see  no  clear  distinction  between  rights  relinquished  by  a 
positive  grant,  and  lost  by  implication.*'  * 

Speeches  were  then  made  by  Henry,  Grayson,  and  Nicholas. 
George  Mason  rose  to  correct  Nicholas  who  had  asserted 
that  the  Virginia  Bill  of  Rights  did  not  prohibit  torture, 
whereas,  in  fact,  it  was  provided  against  by  two  clauses." 

The  ninth  and  tenth  sections  of  the  first  article,  with  the 
first  section  of  the  second,  were  debated  on  Tuesday  the 
17th.  George  Mason  was  the  first  to  speak  after  the  read- 
ing of  the  first  clause  ;  also  after  the  reading  of  the  second, 
third,  and  fourth,  and  again  after  the  fifth  and  sixth.  He 
called  this  a  fatal  section,  ''  which  has  created  more  dangers 

»  Ibid,  ■  •*  Debates  of  the  Virginia  Convention,"  Robertson. 


250     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE   OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

than  any  other."  He  reprobated  the  clause  allowing  the 
importation  of  slaves  for  twenty  years.  Yet  at  the  same 
time  that  the  slave-trade  was  continued,  there  was  no  pro- 
tection for  the  slaves  already  in  the  country.  A  tax  might 
be  laid  which  would  amount  to  manumission.  ''So  that 
*they  have  done  what  they  ought  not  to  have  done,  and 
have  left  undone  what  they  ought  to  have  done.* "  This 
clause  was  discussed  by  Madison,  Tyler,  Henry,  and  Nicho- 
las, when  the  next  three  clauses  were  read  and  George 
Mason  said  of  the  fourth,  on  the  subject  of  a  capitation 
or  other  direct  tax,  that  it  was  no  restriction.  **  It  only 
meant  that  the  quantum  to  be  raised  of  each  State,  should 
be  in  proportion  to  their  numbers.  .  .  .  But  the  general 
government  was  not  precluded  from  laying  the  proportion 
of  any  particular  State  on  any  one  species  of  property  they 
might  think  proper."  And  by  laying  heavy  taxes  on  slaves 
they  might  destroy  this  property.  Madison  replied  to 
Mason,  and  after  the  reading  of  the  fifth  and  sixth  clauses, 
the  latter  spoke  again.  He  objected  to  the  publication  of 
the  Treasury  accounts  "  from  time  to  time  "  only.  The  ex- 
pression was  a  loose  one  and  might  mean  any  time,  monthly 
or  once  in  seven  years.  It  was  urged  that  there  might  be 
matters  which  would  require  secrecy.  "  But  he  did  not  con- 
ceive that  the  receipts  and  expenditures  of  the  public  money 
ought  ever  to  be  concealed."  And  now  occurred  a  second 
little  encounter  between  George  Mason  and  "  Light-Horse 
Harry."  The  latter  ^"  thought  such  trivial  arguments,  as 
that  just  used  by  the  honorable  gentleman,  would  have  no 
weight  with  the  committee.  He  conceived  the  expression  to 
be  sufficiently  explicit  and  satisfactory,"  etc.,  etc.  Colonel 
Mason  "  begged  to  be  permitted  to  use  that  mode  of  argu- 
ing to  which  he  had  been  accustomed.  However  desirous  he 
was  of  pleasing  that  worthy  gentleman,  his  duty  would  not 
give  way  to  that  pleasure."  After  a  justification  of  the  clause 
by  Nicholas,  Corbin,  and  Madison,  George  Mason  answered, 
"  that  in  the  Confederation,  the  public  proceedings  were  to 
to  be  published  monthly,  which  was  infinitely  better  than 


EX  POST  FACTO  LAWS,  2$ I 

depending  on  men's  virtue  to  publish  them  or  not,  as  they 
might  please."  After  the  reading  of  the  seventh  clause 
Patrick  Henry  made  the  first  speech,  passing  in  review  the 
whole  section,  which  he  characterized  as  the  bill  of  rights  of 
the  Constitution,  or  its  substitute.  And  he  pointed  out  how 
far  its  restrictions  fell  short  of  the  requirements  needed. 
Edmund  Randolph  replied  at  considerable  length,  and 
Henry  rejoined  that  he  lamented  "  that  he  could  not  see 
with  that  perspicuity  which  other  gentlemen  were  blessed 
with." 

After  the  reading  of  the  first  clause  of  the  tenth  section 
Patrick  Henry  spoke  again.  Madison  made  a  rejoinder,  and 
then  George  Mason  took  the  floor.  Henry  had  deprecated 
the  restrictions  on  the  States — that  they  could  not  emit  bills 
of  credit,  make  anything  but  gold  and  silver  coin  a  tender 
in  payment  of  debts,  pass  ex  post  facto  laws,  etc. ;  and  he 
feared  one  effect  would  be  that  Virginia  would  have  to  pay 
for  her  share  of  Continental  money,  shilling  for  shilling,  and 
he  asked  if  there  had  not  been  State  speculations  in  this 
matter.  George  Mason  said  that  both  States  and  individu- 
als had  speculated  enormously.  Madison  had  referred  to 
the  first  clause  in  the  sixth  article  as  protecting  the  States. 
Mason  considered  this  satisfactory  as  far  as  it  went ;  **  that  is, 
that  the  Continental  money  ought  to  stand  on  the  same 
ground  as  it  did  previously,  or  that  the  claim  should  not  be 
impaired.  .  .  .  Neither  the  State  legislatures  nor  Congress 
can  make  an  ex  post  facto  law.  The  nominal  value  must 
therefore  be  paid.  .  .  .  The  clause  under  consideration 
does  away  with  the  pretended  security  in  the  clause  which 
was  adduced  by  the  honorable  gentleman."  After  speeches 
by  Madison,  Henry,  Nicholas,  and  Randolph,  George  Mason 
again  addressed  the  chair,  maintaining  that  though  the 
debt  was  transferred  to  Congress,  they  had  no  means  of 
paying  it,  because  they  could  not  pass  ex  post  facto  laws. 
"  And  it  would  be  ex  post  facto  to  all  intents  and  pur- 
poses  to  pay  off  creditors  with  less  than  the  nominal  sum, 
which  they  were  originally  promised."     He  disputed  the 


252      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

technical  definition  of  such  a  law,  which  Edmund  Randolph 
declared  related  only  to  criminal  cases,  whereas  it  was» 
according  to  the  ordinary  use  of  words,  simply  a  retrospec- 
tive law.  The  federal  court  would  have  to  decide,  and  it 
would  be  their  duty  to  pronounce  such  laws  unconstitu- 
tional. He  proceeded  to  mention  a  remarkable  effect  this 
Constitution  would  have. 

"  How  stood  our  taxes  before  this  Constitution  was  introduced  ? 
Requisitions  were  made  on  the  State  legislatures,  and  if  they 
were  unjust  they  could  be  refused.  .  .  .  But  now  this  could 
not  be  done  ;  for  direct  taxation  is  brought  home  to  us.  The 
federal  officer  collects  immediately  of  the  planters.  When  it 
withholds  the  only  possible  means  of  discharging  these  debts, 
and  by  direct  taxation  prevents  any  opposition  to  the  most  enor- 
mous and  unjust  demand,  where  are  you  ?  Is  there  a  ray  of 
hope  ?  •• 

What  was  here  feared  from  direct  taxation  has  come  to  pass 
through  another  form  of  the  power  given  Congress  in  the 
eighth  section.  Experience  has  proved  that  indirect  taxa- 
tion was  the  more  dangerous  prerogative.  George  Mason 
continued.  It  was  said  "  the  United  States  can  be  plain- 
tiffs, but  never  defendants.  If  so  it  stands  on  very  unjust 
grounds.  The  United  States  cannot  be  come  at  for  anything 
they  may  owe,  but  may  get  what  is  due  to  them.  There  is 
therefore  no  reciprocity."  After  Madison  had  spoken  in 
reply  to  Mason,  asserting  that  the  clause  was  merely  declara- 
tory, and  things  existed  just  as  they  were  before,  Mason 
declared  himself  "  still  convinced  of  the  rectitude  of  his 
former  opinion.  He  thought  it  might  be  put  on  a  safer 
footing  by  three  words.  By  continuing  the  restriction  of  ex 
post  facto  laws  to  crimes,  it  would  then  stand  under  the  new 
government  as  it  did  under  the  old.**  Colonel  Mason  was 
the  first  to  speak  after  the  reading  of  the  next  clause.  He 
objected  to  its  restrictions  upon  the  States,  as  preventing 
Virginia  from  making  "  any  inspection  law  but  what  is  sub- 
ject to  the  control  and  revision  of  Congress.     Hence  gentle- 


PRINCIPLE  OF  RESPONSIBILITY  NEGLECTED,       253 

men,  who  know  nothing  of  the  business,  will  make  rules 
concerning  it  which  may  be  detrimental  to  our  interests. 
.  .  .  Under  this  clause  that  incidental  revenue  which  is 
calculated  to  pay  for  the  inspection,  and  to  defray  contin- 
gent charges,  is  to  be  put  into  the  federal  treasury.  But  if 
any  tobacco  house  is  burnt,  we  cannot  make  up  the  loss.  I 
conceive  this  to  be  unjust  and  unreasonable.  When  any 
profit  arises  from  it,  it  goes  into  the  federal  treasury.  But 
when  there  is  any  loss  or  deficiency  from  damage,  it  cannot 
be  made  up.  Congress  are  to  make  regulations  for  our 
tobacco.  Are  men  in  the  States  where  no  tobacco  is  made 
proper  judges  of  this  business?  .  .  .  This  is  one  of 
the  most  wanton  powers  of  the  general  government." 
George  Nicholas  defended  the  clause,  and  said  a  tax  could 
be  laid  to  make  up  for  the  loss  of  warehouses  destroyed  by 
fire.  Colonel  Mason  replied  "that  the  State  legislatures 
could  make  no  law  but  what  would  come  within  the  general 
control  given  to  Congress ;  and  that  the  regulation  of  the 
inspection,  and  the  imposition  of  duties,  must  be  inseparably 
blended  together."  George  Mason  rose  after  the  reading 
of  the  first  section  of  the  second  article  and  expressed  his 
unqualified  disapprobation  of  some  of  its  provisions.  "  The 
great  fundamental  principle  of  responsibility  in  republican- 
ism is  here  sapped."  This  referred  to  the  election  of  the 
President  without  rotation. 

"  It  may  be  said  that  a  new  election  may  remove  him,  and 
place  another  in  his  stead.  If  we  judge  from  the  experience  of 
all  other  countries,  and  even  our  own,  we  may  conclude  that,  as 
the  President  of  the  United  States  may  be  re-elected,  so  he  will 
.  .  .  This  President  will  be  elected  time  after  time ;  he  will 
be  continued  in  office  for  life." 

Turning  to  Edmund  Randolph,  Colonel  Mason  continued : 

'*  The  honorable  gentleman,  my  colleague  in  the  late  Federal 
Convention,  mentions  with  applause  those  parts  of  which  he  had 
expressed  his  disapprobation.     He  says  not  a  word.     If  I  am 


254      ^IP£  ^ND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON, 

mistaken  let  me  be  put  right.'  I  shall  not  make  use  of  his  name ; 
but  in  the  course  of  this  investigation  I  shall  use  the  arguments 
of  that  gentleman  against  it.*' 

The  **  honorable  gentleman  "  must  have  writhed  under  these 
words,  and  the  promise  they  held  out  of  turning  his  own 
weapons  against  him  was  not  reassuring  to  the  time-serving 
governor.  The  danger  of  European  influence  was  then 
dwelt  upon.  George  Mason  thought  "  some  stated  time 
ought  to  be  fixed  when  the  President  ought  to  be  reduced  to 
a  private  station,"  and  he  advocated  eight  years  of  office  out 
of  twelve  or  sixteen  years.  As  it  was,  he  might  remain  in 
office  for  life.  The  danger  here  dreaded  may  now  seem 
chimerical.  And  public  opinion  has  decided  against  a  third 
term,  so  that  eight  years  is  practically  the  limit.  But  none 
the  less  there  remains  no  constitutional  restriction  against 
the  possible  perils  inherent  in  the  article  under  considera- 
tion. Edmund  Randolph  now  proceeded  to  confute  his 
former  opinions,  but  George  Mason  made  no  further  reply 
to  him.  The  latter  spoke  next  on  the  subject  of  the  Vice- 
President,  whom  he  considered  an  unnecessary  officer.  He 
had  addressed  the  Convention  twelve  times  during  this  day's 
session." 

After  speeches,  on  Wednesday,  from  Monroe  and  Grayson, 
George  Mason  discussed  the  mode  of  electing  the  Executive, 
as  open  to  objection  : 

"  A  majority  of  the  whole  number  of  electors  is  necessary  to 
elect  the  President.  It  is  not  the  greatest  number  of  votes  that  is 
required,  but  a  majority  of  the  whole  number  of  electors.  If  there 
be  more  than  one  having  such  majority,  and  an  equal  number,  one 
of  them  is  to  be  chosen  by  ballot  of  the  House  of  Representatives. 
But  if  no  one  have  a  majority  of  the  actual  number  of  electors 
appointed,  how  is  he  to  be  chosen  ?  From  the  five  highest  on  the 
list,  by  ballot  of  the  lower  house,  and  the  votes  to  be  taken  by 

'  The  punctuation  of  this  sentence  in  Robertson  is  evidently  incorrect,  and 
has  been  altered  here. 

*  Appendix  iii.  '*  Debates  of  the  Virginia  Convention,"  Robertson. 


ALL  BALANCES  DESTROYED.  255 

States.  I  conceive  he  ought  to  be  chosen  from  the  two  highest  on 
the  list.  This  would  be  simple  and  easy.  Then  indeed  the  people 
would  have  some  agency  in  the  election.  But  when  it  is  extended 
to  the  five  highest,  a  person  having  a  very  small  number  of  votes 
may  be  elected." 

And  in  regard  to  the  second  section  of  the  article  on  the 
Executive,  George  Mason  said  : 

''  It  has  been  wittily  observed  that  the  Constitution  has  married 
the  President  and  the  Senate — has  made  them  man  and  wife.  I 
believe  the  consequence  that  generally  results  from  marriage  will 
happen  here.  They  will  be  continually  supporting  and  aiding 
each  other;  they  will  always  consider  their  interest  as  united. 
.  .  .  The  executive  and  legislative  powers  thus  connected  will 
destroy  all  balances ;  this  would  have  been  prevented  by  a  consti- 
tutional council,  to  aid  the  President  in  the  discharge  of  his  office, 
vesting  the  Senate,  at  the  same  time,  with  the  power  of  impeaching 
them." 

Madison  in  his  reply  took  issue  with  Mason  on  the  construc- 
tion of  the  phrase,  "  majority  of  the  whole  number  of  electors 
appointed."  However,  the  present  mode  of  electing  the  Ex- 
ecutive, by  special  conventions,  the  electoral  college  simply 
registering  the  result  of  the  vote  on  the  nominees  of  the 
conventions,  is  a  wide  departure  in  practice  from  the  theory 
contemplated  by  the  Constitution. 

George  Mason  was  the  first  to  speak  after  the  reading  of 
the  first  clause  of  the  second  section  of  article  second.  He 
was  alarmed  at  the  great  powers  given  the  President.  That 
of  commanding  the  army  in  person  he  thought  very  danger- 
ous. He  believed  a  general  superintendence  was  sufficient, 
and  he  took  occasion  to  remark  on  the  virtues  and  magna- 
nimity of  Washington,  who,  had  he  been  ambitious,  might 
have  done  much  harm  to  the  country:  "  So  disinterested  and 
amiable  a  character  as  General  Washington  might  never 
command  again."  He  thought  the  President  should  not 
have  the  pardoning  power.  General  Lee  said  the  President 
would  not  necessarily  command  in  person  and  might  only  do 


256     UFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON, 

SO  in  case  he  was  a  military  man  and  the  public  safety 
required  it.  To  this  Mason  retorted,  that  the  President 
might  command  if  he  pleased,  and  might  make  a  dangerous 
use  of  his  power.  George  Nicholas  compared  the  State  and 
federal  governments,  in  the  power  of  the  former  over  the 
militia  and  the  latter  over  the  army  and  navy,  and  George 
Mason  replied  that  **  the  Governor  did  not  possess  such  ex- 
tensive powers  as  the  President,  and  had  no  influence  over 
the  navy.  The  liberty  of  the  people  had  been  destroyed  by 
those  who  were  military  commanders  only.  The  danger  here 
was  greater  by  the  junction  of  great  civil  powers  to  the  com- 
mand of  the  army  and  fleet."  Madison  animadverted  upon 
Mason's  objection  to  giving  the  Executive  the  pardoning 
power,  and  said  that  it  would  not  be  proper  to  vest  it  in  the 
House  of  Representatives,  because  large  popular  bodies  were 
more  apt  to  be  swayed  by  passion.  He  instanced  the  case  of 
Massachusetts  and  Shay's  Rebellion,  where  the  same  legisla- 
ture at  different  sessions  were  actuated  by  exactly  opposite 
sentiments.  To  this  Colonel  Mason  answered  that  "  they  [the 
Assemblies]  were  both  right ;  for  in  the  first  instance,  when 
such  ideas  of  severity  prevailed,  a  rebellion  was  in  existence, 
in  such  circumstance  it  was  right  to  be  rigid.  But  after  it 
was  over,  it  would  be  wrong  to  exercise  unnecessary  severity." 
The  second  clause  was  read,  and  George  Mason  was  again  on 
his  feet,  objecting  to  this  most  dangerous  provision,  "  as 
thereby  five  States  might  make  a  treaty,  ten  Senators,  the 
representatives  of  five  States — being  two-thirds  of  a  quorum. 
These  ten  might  come  from  the  five  smallest  States."  George 
Nicholas  answered  Colonel  Mason,  but  the  latter  was  not  pre- 
pared to  agree  with  him  in  his  argument  as  to  the  superiority 
of  the  Constitution  over  the  Confederation  on  this  point. 
The  subject  was  discussed  for  some  time  longer,  both  Henry 
and  Grayson,  among  others,  making  speeches  on  this  question 
of  the  treaty  power.  On  Thursday,  the  19th,  after  Grayson 
and  Nicholas  had  spoken,  George  Mason  continued  his 
remarks  on  the  same  topic.  He  considered  this  as  **  one  of 
the  greatest  acts  of  sovereignty,"  and  thought  it  should  be 


TREAT Y'MAKING  POWER  DISCUSSED.  2 5/ 

most  carefully  guarded.  As  it  was,  the  President  had  more 
power  than  the  King  of  England.  **  Could  the  King  give 
Portsmouth  to  France?  He  could  not  do  this  without  an 
express  act  of  Parliament — without  the  consent  of  the  legis- 
lature in  all  its  branches.  There  are  other  things  which  the 
King  cannot  do,  which  may  be  done  by  the  President  and 
Senate  in  this  case.**  The  common  law  of  England,  he  said, 
was  not  the  common  law  of  this  country.  And  there  was 
nothing  in  the  Constitution  to  prevent  the  relinquishment  of 
territory  by  treaty.  "  No  treaty  to  dismember  the  empire, 
ought  to  be  made  without  the  consent  of  three-fourths  of  the 
legislature  in  all  its  branches.**  And  only  unavoidable  neces- 
sity could  excuse  such  a  treaty  when  it  would  doubtless  have 
the  "general  and  uniform  vote  of  the  Continental  Parlia- 
ment.**' Corbin,  Henry,  and  Madison  all  spoke  on  this 
occasion  ;  the  former  exhibiting,  as  Grigsby  says,  "  great 
perspicacity  in  anticipating  the  real  action  of  the  Federal 
Government,**  in  regard  to  treaties." 

'  Appendix  iii. 

•  '*  History  of  the  Virginia  Federal  Convention,"  p.  274. 
vol.  ii — 17 


CHAPTER   VI!I. 


AN  ANTIFED ERA  LIST  LEADER. 


1788. 

The  Convention  had  now  reached,  Thursday  the  igth  of 
June,  a  most  important  part  of  the  Constitution — the  first 
and  second  sections  of  the  third  article,  on  the  federal  judi- 
ciary. It  was  a  theme,  says  the  historian  of  the  Convention, 
"  which,  in  itself  considered,  possessed  an  importance  in  the 
eyes  of  our  fathers  that  language  would  vainly  attempt  to 
measure,  which  was  discussed  with  a  fulness  of  learning, 
with  a  keenness  of  logic,  and  with  a  glow  of  eloquence  that 
it  might  well  elicit,  and  which,  though  technical,  and  seen 
through  a  vista  of  seventy  [now  a  hundred]  years,  cannot 
fail  to  strike  a  responsive  chord  in  the  hearts  of  every  true 
son  and  daughter  of  our  noble  Commonwealth."  And  it 
possessed  an  additional  interest  as  it  was  to  be  "the  last 
battle-^ound  of  the  parties  into  which  the  Convention 
was  in  nearly  equal  portions  divided."  '  Grigsby  reminds 
us  that  the  experience  of  a  century  "  will  place  a  child 
apparently  on  the  same  level  with  a  giant,  and  the  merest 
tyro  in  politics  with  a  Somers  or  a  Mason,"  and  he  adds 
"  that  the  fears  and  gloomy  predictions  uttered  by  the  oppo- 
nents of  the  Constitution  have,  by  the  vigilance  and  caution 
which  they  inspired,  operated  in  a  material  degree  in  pre- 
venting their  own  fulfilment."  Edmund  Pendleton  having 
first  spoken,  in  favor  of  the  proposed  system,  Colonel 
Mason  said  he  had  hoped  the  friends  of  the  Constitution 

'  Grigtbr's  "  Hiitoiy  of  Ihe  Virginia  Federal  Convenlion,"  p.  376. 
=58 


STATE   GOVERNMENTS  AND  JUDICIARIES.  259 

would  have  had  the  candor  to  point  out  the  objections  that 
must  be  apparent  to  all.  **  It  is  with  great  reluctance,"  he 
added, ''  I  speak  of  this  department,  as  it  lies  out  of  my  line. 
I  should  not  tell  my  sentiments  upon  it,  did  I  not  conceive 
it  to  be  so  constructed  as  to  destroy  the  dearest  rights  of 
the  community."  He  asked  what  power  remained  to  the 
State  courts.  He  could  see  no  limitation  to  the  power  of 
the  federal  courts,  and  Congress  might  establish  any  num- 
ber of  them ;  while  the  discrimination  between  their  juris- 
diction and  that  of  the  State  courts  existed  only  in  name. 

'*  To  what  disgraceful  and  dangerous  length  does  the  principle 
of  this  go !  For  if  your  State  judiciaries  are  not  to  be  trusted 
with  the  administration  of  common  justice,  and  decision  of  dis- 
putes respecting  property  between  man  and  man,  much  less 
ought  the  State  governments  to  be  trusted  with  power  of  legis- 
lation. The  principle  itself  goes  to  the  destruction  of  the  legis- 
lation of  the  States,  whether  or  not  it  was  intended.  As  to  my 
own  opinion,  I  most  religiously  and  conscientiously  believe  that 
it  was  intended,  though  I  am  not  absolutely  certain.  But  I 
think  it  will  destroy  the  State  governments,  whatever  may  have 
been  the  intention.  There  are  many  gentlemen  in  the  United 
States  who  think  it  right,  that  we  should  have  one  great,  national, 
consolidated  government,  and  that  it  was  better  to  bring  it  about 
slowly  and  imperceptibly  rather  than  all  at  once.  This  is  no 
reflection  on  any  man,  for  I  mean  none.  To  those  who  think  • 
that  one  national,  consolidated  government  is  best  for  America, 
this  extensive,  judicial  authority  will  be  agreeable  ;  but  I  hope 
there  are  many  in  this  Convention  of  a  different  opinion,  and  who 
see  their  political  happiness  resting  on  their  State  governments." 

Though  George  Mason  had  said  he  meant  no  reflection 
on  any  man,  there  was  one  member  of  the  Convention  who 
could  not  but  consider  his  remarks  as  personal.  Madison 
alone  of  those  present  who  had  been  delegates  to  the  Fed- 
eral Convention  felt  a  responsibility  for  its  work.  Randolph 
had  changed  sides,  and  George  Wythe,  though  voting  with 
the  Federalists  on  that  occasion,  had  taken  no  conspicuous 


26o     LiFE  AND  COMMESFOSDENCE  OF  CEOMGE  MASON. 

part  in  the  matter.  Then,  too,  Madison  was  now  hand  in 
glove  with  Alexander  Hamilton,  whose  views  were  well 
known  to  be  inimical  to  State  sovereignty.  These  two  were 
at  this  time  writing  the  letters  of  Tlu  Fedtralisi  for  the 
enlightenment  of  the  general  public,  while  carrying  on  an 
anxious  private  correspondence,  in  idiich  their  S3rmpathy  is 
seen  to  be  complete  on  the  subject  of  adopting  the  un- 
amended Constitution.  Madison,  therefore,  interrupted 
Colonel  Mason,  and  asked  for  "an  unequivocal  explana- 
tion."   To  this  challenge  Mason  made  reply : 

^  I  shall  never  refuse  to  explain  myself.  It  is  notorious  that 
this  \%  a  prevailing  principle.  It  was  at  least  the  opinion  of 
many  gentlemen  in  Convention,  and  many  in  the  United  States. 
I  do  not  know  what  explanation  the  honorable  gentleman  asks. 
I  can  say,  with  great  truth,  that  the  honorable  gentleman,  in 
private  conversation  with  me,  expressed  himself  against  it; 
neither  did  I  ever  hear  any  of  the  delegates  from  this  State 
advocate  it" 

With  this  explanation  Madison  professed  himself  satisfied, 
and  George  Mason  continued  his  argument.  He  passed  in 
review  the  powers  given  the  judiciary,  approving  of  some 
unconditionally,  of  others  under  restrictions,  but  excepting 
to  some  altogether  as  "  utterly  inconsistent  with  reason  and 
good  policy."  He  dwelt  upon  the  hardships  and  expense  to 
a  poor  man  in  case  of  oppression  by  federal  officials. 

*'  Even  suppose  the  poor  man  should  be  able  to  obtain  judg- 
ment in  the  inferior  court,  for  the  greatest  injury,  what  justice 
can  he  get  on  appeal  ?  Can  he  go  four  hundred  or  five  hundred 
miles  ?  Can  he  stand  the  expense  attending  it  ?  On  this  occa- 
sion they  are  to  judge  of  fact  as  well  as  law.  He  must  bring  his 
witnesses  where  he  is  not  known,  where  a  new  evidence  may  be 
brought  against  him,  of  which  he  never  heard  before,  and  which 
he  cannot  contradict." 

While  admitting  that  in  maritime  and  chancery  cases 
jurisdiction  as  to  fact  was  necessary,  he  thought  in  common- 


UNLIMITED  POWER  OF  FEDERAL   COURTS.         261 

law  controversies  it  was  inexpedient  and  dangerous.  And 
he  proposed  an  amendment,  which  is  to  be  found  as  corre- 
sponding to  the  first  part  of  the  fourteenth  amendment 
adopted  by  the  Convention.  In  regard  .to  controversies 
between  citizens  of  different  States,  Colonel  Mason  said : 

''  Can  we  not  trust  our  State  courts  with  the  decision  of  these  ? 
If  I  have  a  controversy  with  a  man  in  Maryland — if  a  man  in 
Maryland  has  my  bond  for  ;;^ioo,  are  not  the  State  courts  com- 
petent to  try  it  ?  Is  it  suspected  that  they  would  enforce  the 
payment  if  unjust,  or  refuse  to  enforce  it  if  just  ?  The  very  idea 
is  ridiculous." 

He  dilated  further  upon  this  case,  and  then  proceeded  to 
consider  that  of  the  British  creditor  and  the  citizens  of  Vir- 
ginia, and  he  thought  there  were  many  instances  where  the 
federal  courts  could  oblige  the  latter  to  pay  a  debt  twice 
over.  Again,  in  regard  to  disputed  lands  he  saw  peril  to 
many  in  the  community.  "  I  am  personally  endangered," 
he  went  on  to  say,  "  as  an  inhabitant  of  the  Northern  Neck. 
The  people  of  that  part  will  be  obliged,  by  the  operation  of 
this  power,  to  pay  the  quitrent  of  their  lands.  .  .  .  Lord 
Fairfax's  title  was  clear  and  undisputed.  After  the  Revolu- 
tion, we  taxed  his  lands  as  private  property.  After  his  death, 
an  act  of  Assembly  was  made,  in  1782,  to  sequester  the  quit- 
rents  due,  at  his  death,  in  the  hands  of  his  debtors.  Next 
year  an  act  was  made  restoring  them  to  the  executor  of  the 
proprietor.  Subsequent  to  this,  the  treaty  of  peace  was 
made,  by  which  it  was  agreed  that  there  should  be  no 
further  confiscations.  But  after  this  an  act  of  Assembly 
passed  confiscating  this  whole  property.  As  Lord  Fairfax's 
title  was  indisputably  good,  and  as  treaties  are  to  be  the 
supreme  law  of  the  land,  will  not  his  representatives  be  able 
to  recover  all  in  the  federal  court  ?  **  Next  he  named  the 
great  land  companies,  who  would  now  come  forward  : 

"  All  that  tract  of  country  between  the  Blue  Ridge  and  the 
Alleghany  Mountains,  will  be  claimed,  and  probably  recovered  in 


262     UPE  AND  COMMESPOHDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASOtf. 

the  icdcnl  coon,  from  the  {present  possessors^  bj  those  companies 
who  hare  a  title  to  them.  .  .  .  Again,  the  great  Indiana 
purchase,  which  was  made  to  the  westward,  will,  by  this  jadidai 
power,  be  rendered  a  caose  of  dispate.  .  .  .  Three  or  four 
coanties  are  settled  on  the  land  to  which  that  company  claims  a 
title,  and  hare  long  enjoyed  it  peaceably.  All  these  claims 
before  those  courts,  if  they  snccecd,  will  introduce  a  scene  of 
distress  and  confusion  nerer  heard  of  before.  Our  peasants  will 
be,  like  those  mentioned  by  Virgil,  reduced  to  ruin  and  misery, 
driTen  from  their  farms,  and  obliged  to  leare  their  country — 

Nas  patriam  fugiwmSy  et  dmUia  Unqviwtms  array 

George  Mason  then  proposed  an  amendment,  '*  that  the 
judicial  power  shall  extend  to  no  case  where  the  cause  of 
action  shall  have  originated  before  the  ratification  of  this 
Constitution,  except  in  suits  for  debts  due  to  the  United 
States,  disputes  between  States  about  their  territory,  and 
disputes  between  persons  claiming  lands  under  the  grants  of 
different  States."  '  This  forms  the  concluding  clause  of  the 
fourteenth  amendment  recommended  by  the  Convention. 

Grigsby  observes  that  "  Madison  manifested  great  sensi- 
tiveness during  the  speech  of  Mason,  and  it  is  not  to  be 
disguised  that  he  did  touch  doctrines  in  the  [Federal]  Con- 
vention which  would  have  led  the  way  to  the  plan  denounced 
by  Mason ;  for  he  is  reported  by  Yates  to  have  said  that  the 
States  were  never  sovereign,  and  were  petty  corporations."  * 
Though  it  was  past  the  hour  for  adjournment,  Madison  rose 
to  reply  to  Mason  "  to  break  the  effect  "  of  his  speech.  And 
on  the  following  day  Madison  continued  his  argument. 
"  There  was  an  evident  interest  shown,"  says  Grigsby,  "  to 
hear  the  speech  of  Madison,  who,  like  Mason,  was  not  a 
lawyer,  on  a  topic  which  was  beyond  the  usual  sphere  of  a 
politician,  and  which  had  been  argued  with  such  eminent 
ability  by  Mason  the  day  before."  *  Patrick  Henry  spoke 
in  reply  to  Madison,  and  he  was  followed  by  Pendleton,  who 

*  Appendix  iii. 

*  "  History  of  the  Virginia  Federal  Convention/'  note  to  p.  285. 
•/W</.,  p.  290. 


PENDLETON  AND  MARSHALL  ANSWER  MASON.    263 

sought  to  refute  the  arguments  of  Mason  and  Henry.  He 
accused  George  Mason  of  making  a  mistake  in  his  speech 
**  on  the  propriety  of  a  jury  from  the  vicinage."  Grigsby 
comments  here : 

'*  Pendleton  sought  to  make  mirth  with  those  gentlemen  of  the 
law  in  the  Convention  who  thought  that  none  but  lawyers  can 
understand  legal  questions.  The  fact  is  that  Mason  was  clearly 
right,  and  Pendleton  clearly  wrong.  Mason  did  not  contend 
that  a  jury  from  the  vicinage  was  the  sole  benefit  accruing  from 
jury  trial,  but  that  it  was  an  important  one,  as  it  assuredly  is, 
which  a  criminal,  carried  a  thousand  miles  from  his  home  would 
lose.  As  Pendleton  wholly  excludes  from  his  view  this  great 
benefit,  it  is  he  that  errs,  and  not  Mason.'* ' 

Pendleton  also  referred  to  the  case  supposed  by  Mason» 
that  a  Virginian  holding  his  bond  might,  through  malice, 
assign  it  to  a  citizen  of  a  neighboring  State,  and  asserted 
that  this  was  not  a  well-founded  objection.  Colonel  Mason 
replied  : 

*'  The  honorable  gentleman  has  said  that  there  can  be  no 
danger  in  the  first  instance  because  it  is  not  within  the  original 
jurisdiction  of  the  Supreme  Court ;  but  that  the  suit  must  be 
brought  in  the  inferior  federal  court  of  Virginia.  He  supposes 
there  can  never  be  an  appeal,  in  this  case,  by  the  plaintifif, 
because  he  gets  a  judgment  on  his  bond  ;  and  that  the  defendant 
alone  can  appeal,  who  therefore,  instead  of  being  injured,  obtains 
a  privilege.     Permit  me  to  examine  the  force  of  this." 

And  the  speaker  proceeded  to  show  that  his  objection  was 
a  legitimate  one,  and  he  added  :  "  The  honorable  gentle- 
man recommends  to  me  to  alter  my  proposed  amendment. 
I  would  as  soon  take  the  advice  of  that  gentleman  as  any 
other,  but  though  the  regard  which  I  have  for  him  be  great, 
I  cannot  assent  on  this  great  occasion."  Marshall  occupied 
the  attention  of  the  house  for  the  remainder  of  the  day's 
session.     He   passed   in   review  some  of  George   Mason's 

*  Ibid^t  note  to  p.  294. 


264     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON, 

objections  to  the  great  powers  given  the  judiciary,  and 
pronounced  them  chimerical.  Mason  had  said  of  the  clause^ 
"  to  controversies  between  a  State  and  the  citizens  of  an- 
other State,"  in  reference  to  the  land  companies,  that  these 
claims  would  be  tried  before  a  federal  court : 

'*  Is  not  this  disgraceful  ?  Is  this  State  to  be  brought  to  the 
bar  of  justice  like  a  delinquent  individual  ?  Is  the  sovereignty 
of  the  State  to  be  arraigned  like  a  culprit,  or  private  offender  ? 
.  .  .  What  is  to  be  done  if  a  judgment  be  obtained  against  a 
State  ?  Will  you  issue  a  fieri  facias  f  It  would  be  ludicrous  to 
say  you  could  put  the  State's  body  in  jail.  How  is  the  judgment, 
then,  to  be  enforced  ?  A  power  which  cannot  be  exercised  ought 
not  to  be  granted." 

And  Marshall  replied  :  "  /  fiope  no  gentleman  will  think 
that  a  State  will  be  called  at  the  bar  of  the  federal  court** 
Later  events  justified  George  Mason's  fears,  and  necessitated 
the  eleventh  amendment.  Edmund  Randolph  had  a  few 
remarks  to  make  on  Friday,  to  the  effect  "  that  the  faults 
which  he  once  saw  in  this  system  he  still  perceived  !  "  He 
unfolded  his  views  on  the  following  day,  after  an  able  speech 
by  Grayson.  "  It  seems  to  have  been  a  rule,"  said  the  latter, 
"  with  the  gentlemen  on  the  other  side,  to  argue  from  the 
excellency  of  human  nature,  in  order  to  induce  us  to  grant 
away  (if  I  may  be  allowed  the  expression)  the  rights  and 
liberties  of  our  country.  I  make  no  doubt  the  same  argu- 
ments were  used  on  a  variety  of  occasions.  I  suppose,  sir, 
this  argument  was  used  when  Cromwell  was  invested  with 
power.  The  same  argument  was  used  to  gain  our  assent  to 
the  stamp  act."  * 

Madison  wrote  to  Alexander  Hamilton  on  Friday  the 
20th,  and  also  on  Sunday  the  22d.  He  spoke  of  the  debates 
having  "  advanced  as  far  as  the  judiciary  department, 
against  which  a  great  effort  is  making."  He  referred  to  the 
project  of  the  Antifederalists  to  bring  forward  a  bill  of 
rights  and  amendments  as  conditions  of  ratification. 

'  **  Debates  of  the  Virginia  Convention,"  Robertson,  p.  402.     Appendix  iii. 


ft 


MADISON   WRITES   TO  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON.     265 

''  The  plan  meditated  by  the  friends  of  the  Constitution  is  to 
preface  the  ratification  with  some  plain  and  general  truths  that 
cannot  affect  the  validity  of  the  act,  and  to  subjoin  a  recommen- 
dation, which  may  hold  up  amendments  as  objects  to  be  pursued 
in  the  constitutional  mode.  These  expedients  are  rendered  pru- 
dent by  the  nice  balance  of  numbers,  and  the  scruples  entertained 
by  some  who  are  in  general  well  affected." 

He  was  by  no  means  sure  of  a  majority,  however,  and 
he  adds : 

''  It  unluckily  happens,  that  our  legislature,  which  meets  at  this 
place  to-morrow,  consists  of  a  considerable  majority  of  Anti- 
federal  members.  This  is  another  circumstance  that  ought  to 
check  our  confidence.  As  individuals  they  may  have  some  influ- 
ence ;  and  as  coming  immediately  from  the  people  at  large  they 
can  give  any  color  they  please  to  the  popular  sentiments  at  this 
moment,  and  may  in  that  mode  throw  a  bias  on  the  representa^ 
tives  of  the  people  in  Convention." ' 

The  last  week  of  the  Convention  opened  inauspiciously 
for  the  needs  of  the  future  historian,  as  on  this  day,  Monday 
the  23d,  the  short-hand  writer  was  absent,  and  only  very 
incomplete  notes  of  the  speeches  were  preserved.  George 
Mason  spoke  four  times  on  the  23d,  and  made  his  last 
heroic  efforts  to  procure  amendments.  Only  once  again 
was  his  voice  heard  in  the  Convention,  when  on  the  24th  he 
rose  to  correct  an  erroneous  statement  made  by  Edmund 
Randolph.  On  the  23d  the  first  and  second  sections  of  the 
third  article  were  still  under  consideration.  George  Nicholas 
urged  that  the  Convention  proceed  to  the  next  section,  but 
Henry  did  not  consider  the  objections  of  the  opposition  had 
been  answered  in  a  manner  to  give  satisfaction.  He  called 
in  question  a  statement  of  Marshall's,  relating  to  the  trial  by 
jury,  which  the  latter  rose  to  explain,  declaring  that  it  was 
as  well  secured  in  the  Constitution  as  in  the  Virginia  Bill  of 
Rights.  Henry  replied  to  this  at  considerable  length.  George 
Nicholas  made  the  succeeding  speech  (after  Stephen),  and 

>  '*  Works  of  Hamilton,"  John  C.  Hamilton,  vol.  i.,  p.  462. 


266      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OP  GEORGE  MASON. 

in  the  course  of  his  remarks  gave  oflFence  to  Patrick  Henry. 
The  atmospheric  conditions  were  not  favorable  to  coolness 
of  temper,  either  in-  or  out-of-doors,  and  the  crisis  of  political 
excitement  had  been  reached,  probably,  on  this  day,  with 
the  members  of  the  Assembly,  as  they  arrived  in  Richmond, 
swelling  the  eager  audience,  too  much  interested  in  the 
work  of  the  Convention  to  organize  their  own  Houses. 
The  president,  after  some  heated  discussion  between 
Nicholas  and  Henry,  observed,  "  that  he  hoped  gentlemen 
would  not  be  personal,  that  they  would  proceed  to  investi- 
gate  the  subject  calmly  and  in  a  peaceable  manner."  After 
speeches  by  Monroe,  Madison,  Grayson,  and  Henry,  of 
which  we  have  only  the  outlines,  George  Mason  spoke  in 
conclusion,  on  the  judiciary.  "With  respect  to  concurrent 
jurisdiction,"  said  Mason  in  reply  to  Madison,  who  had 
observed  "  that  county  courts  had  exercised  this  right  with- 
out complaint,"  the  argument  adduced  seemed  to  him  very 
unsatisfactory: 

''  Have  Hanover  and  Henrico  the  same  objects  ?  Can  an 
officer  in  either  of  those  counties  serve  a  process  in  the  other  ? 
The  federal  judiciary  has  concurrent  jurisdiction  throughout 
the  States,  and  therefore  must  interfere  with  the  State  judiciaries. 
.  .  .  If  we  were  forming  a  general  government,  and  not 
States,  I  think  we  should  perfectly  comply  with  the  genius  of  the 
paper  before  you  ;  but  if  we  mean  to  form  one  great  national 
government  for  thirteen  States,  the  arguments  which  I  have 
heard  hitherto  in  support  of  this  part  of  the  plan  do  not  apply  at 
all.  We  are  willing  to  give  up  all  powers  which  are  necessary  to 
preserve  the  peace  of  the  Union,  so  far  as  respects  foreign 
nations,  or  our  own  preservation,  but  we  will  not  agree  to  a 
federal  judiciary,  which  is  not  necessary  for  this  purpose, 
because  the  powers  there  granted  will  tend  to  oppress  the 
middling  and  lower  class  of  people." 

After  further  discussion  of  this  point.  Colonel  Mason  sat 
down,  to  rise  again  on  the  reading  of  the  first  section  of  the 
fourth  article.     He  professed  not  to  understand  the  latter 


MASON'S  FINAL  APPEAL  AND    WARNING.  267 

part  of  this  clause  :  "  Full  faith  and  credit  shall  be  given  to 
all  acts ;  and  how  far  it  may  be  proper  that  Congress  shall 
declare  the  effects,  I  cannot  clearly  see  into."  After  the 
reading  of  the  second  section,  George  Mason  spoke  again. 
He  reverted  to  observations  made  at  an  earlier  stage  in 
their  proceedings,  "on  the  security  of  property  coming 
within  this  section."  He  thought  then  and  he  was  still 
convinced  that  there  was  no  security.'  **  More  than  sixty 
years  after  this  remark  was  made  by  Mason,"  says  Grigsby, 
"  one  of  his  grandsons  in  the  Senate  of  the  United  States 
drew  up  an  act  to  carry  this  clause  of  the  Constitution  into 
effect."  And  he  adds :  "  If  it  had  been  objected  to  the  first 
clause  of  this  section,  that  a  Southern  gentleman  could  not 
travel  with  his  servants  through  another  State  without 
having  them  forcibly  taken  from  him,  or  in  transitu  to  some 
other  State,  the  friends  of  the  Constitution  would  have 
answered  that  from  their  own  experience  no  such  result 
would  ever  follow." ' 

William  Grayson  was  the  first  to  speak  after  the  reading 
of  the  third  section,  which  in  its  first  clause  related  to  the 
admission  of  new  States,  and  in  its  second  clause  to  the 
jurisdiction  of  Congress  over  federal  territory.  Grayson 
foretold  the  difficulty  there  would  be  in  admitting  new 
Southern  States  into  the  Union,  with  a  Northern  majority 
against  them.  George  Mason  here  made  his  last  speech  in 
the  Convention.  But  unfortunately  no  report  of  it  can  be 
said  to  be  extant.  The  meagre  record  published  by  Robert- 
son gives  us  only  a  faint  reflex  of  its  scope  and  purpose. 
He  "  took  a  retrospective  view  of  several  parts  [of  the  Con- 
stitution] which  had  been  before  objected  to.  He  endeav- 
ored to  demonstrate  the  dangers  that  must  inevitably  arise 
from  the  insecurity  of  our  rights  and  privileges,  as  they 
depended  on  vague,  indefinite,  and  ambiguous  implications. 
The  adoption  of  a  system  so  replete  with  defects,  he  appre- 
hended could  not  but  be  productive  of  the  most  alarming  * 

*  Appendix  iii. 

•  "  History  of  the  Virginia  Federal  Convention,"  note  to  p.  304. 


bjr  ^XMerno^  t&at  ^  trsstfid  grirrVmra.  vcnfd  paxse  be&cc 

C/s^iec^atsccs-**  Sccii  »  tbe  bcicf  snocscs  oc  tis  ^=;a!  ap- 
peaL  The  eSoctignce  aad  farr:<tf-'jfc*&  c€  dae  speake 
fcareiy  «igg«stof  to  (ks,  net  ia  snnrae  reproduced, 
tlkstr  effect  oa  fa»  hearers  vas  evadcsthr  aot  ^aglit. 
ffitinaatk^  of  thtf  may  be  gathered  frocn  the  speech  oc  Gai> 
Cfal  Henry  Lee,  which  foOoved  Masoo's^  m  vhich  the 
federaJ  adrocate  sought  to  do  avav  with  the  impression  his 
opponent  iuA  nude.'  We  learn,  too.  what  Madison  thought 
of  George  Mason's  speech,  thnxigh  a  letter  written  by  him 
to  Washington,  on  the  efc-ening  of  the  23d-  Unfortunately 
no  report  from  the  lips  of  friends  remains  to  supplement  the 
ansympathetic  relation  of  political  adversaries.  BatMadtson*s 
letter  is  important  as  filling  out,  to  some  extent,  the  abbre- 
viated journal  of  the  day's  proceedings.  And  we  learn  in  it 
that  Mason  was  answered  by  others  beside  Lee,  and  that 
George  Mason  concluded  his  arraignment  of  the  Constitu- 
tion,  and  his  forecast  of  its  perils,  by  ^  declaring  his  deter- 
mination, for  himself,  to  acquiesce  in  the  event,  whatever  it 
might  be/'     Madison  wrote  to  his  friend : 

^  We  got  through  the  Constitution  by  paragraphs  to-day.  .  .  . 
The  opposition  will  urge  previous  amendments.  Their  conversa- 
tion to-day  teemed  to  betray  despair.  Colonel  Mason,  in  par- 
ticular, talked  in  a  style  which  no  other  sentiment  could  have 
produced.  He  held  out  the  idea  of  civil  convulsions  as  the 
effect  of  obtruding  the  government  on  the  people.  He  was  an- 
swered by  several,  and  concluded  with  declaring  his  determina- 
tion, for  himself,  to  acquiesce  in  the  event,  whatever  it  might  be. 
Mr  Henry  endeavored  to  gloss  what  had  fallen  from  his  friend  ; 
declared  his  aversion  to  the  Constitution  to  be  such  that  he  could 
not  take  the  oath  ;  but  he  would  remain  in  peaceable  submission 
to  the  result/'* 

'  **  Debfttef  of  the  VirginU  Convention/'  Robertson.    Appendix  iii. 
*  "  Writing!  of  Msdison/'  vol.  i..  p.  401. 


I 


REQUIREMENTS  OF  THE  ANTIFEDERALISTS.       269 

On  the  24th,  George  Wythe  proposed  a  resolution  of  rati- 
ficatioHy  and  that  amendments  should  be  recommended  to 
Congress  on  its  first  session  under  the  Constitution.  Henry 
declared  the  motion  premature,  and  after  a  speech  of  some 
length  he  informed  the  committee  that  he  had  a  resolution 
prepared,  to  refer  a  declaration  of  rights,  with  certain 
amendments  to  the  most  exceptionable  parts  of  the  Consti- 
tution, to  the  other  States  in  the  Confederacy,  for  their  con- 
sideration, previous  to  ratification.  These  were  nearly  the 
same,  Robertson  says,  as  the  amendments  ultimately  passed 
by  the  Convention.  And  there  is  every  reason  to  believe 
that,  though  presented  by  Patrick  Henry,  they  were  written 
by  George  Mason,  the  chairman  of  the  Committee  of  Op-j 
position,  and  a  transcript  of  them  is  preserved  among  George 
Mason's  papers.*  Edmund  Randolph  spoke  after  Henry, 
and  commented  on  Wythe's  form  of  ratification,  declaring 
it  sufficient,  as  a  declaration  of  rights.  He  also  passed  in 
review  the  various  amendments  proposed  by  Henry.  In 
regard  to  the  seventh  and  eighth,  he  said : 

''  I  have  never  hesitated  to  acknowledge  that  I  wished  the 
regulation  of  commerce  had  been  put  in  the  hands  of  a 
greater  body  than  it  is  in  the  sense  of  the  Constitution.  But  I 
appeal  to  my  colleagues  in  the  Federal  Convention,  whether 
this  was  not  a  sine  qua  turn  of  the  Union." 

To  this  George  Mason  replied  : 

"  It  never  was,  nor  in  ray  opinion  ever  will  be,  a  sine  qua  non 
of  the  Union.  I  will  give  you,  to  the  best  of  my  recollection,  the 
history  of  that  affair.  This  business  was  discussed  at  Phila- 
delphia for  four  months,  during  which  time  the  subject  of  com- 
merce and  navigation  was  often  under  consideration;  and  I 
assert,  that  eight  States  out  of  twelve,  for  more  than  three 
months,  voted  for  requiring  two-thirds  of  the  members  present 
in  each  House  to  pass  commercial  and  navigation  laws.  ...  If 
I  am  right,  there  was  a  great  majority  for  requiring  two-thirds  of 
the  States  in  this  business,  till  a  compromise  took  place  between 

*  Appendix  iv,  y 


2^0     UPE  AND  COMM£SFOSD£JfC£  OF  GEOMCE  MASOJf. 

the  Xoftbem  a&d  Soothem  Scales ;  the  Xorthera  States  agieeiiig 
to  the  tempocuy  m^tom^Miaa  of  siaTcs,  aad  tbe  Soathem  States 
conceding  in  retnro,  that  narisatioo  aad  cocnmerdal  lavs  should 
be  oo  the  footiiig  on  which  thej  nov  stand.  .  .  .  These  are 
iDf  reasons  for  sajring  that  this  was  not  a  umt  fmm  mtm  of  their 


George  Mason  was  fcdloved  by  John  Dawson,  a  yoang 
member  of  the  opposition,  who  addressed  the  Convention 
now  for  the  first  time.  To  him  succeeded  Grayson,  Madi- 
son, and  Henry.  The  latter  made  that  memorable  appeal  to 
his  hearers  which  Wirt  has  so  graphicaUy  described,  where, 
as  it  was  said,  be  seemed  to  look  beyond  the  horizon,  to  the 
^*  beings  of  a  higher  order,"  who  were  witnesses  of  the  im- 
portant work  then  about  to  be  consummated  in  behalf  of 
posterity,  and  as  he  thrilled  his  auditors  with  his  eloquence, 
a  thunder-storm  mingled  its  turbulence  with  the  human 
emotions  the  orator  had  aroused,  bringing  the  scene  to  a 
dramatic  conclusion. 

The  next  day,  Wednesday,  was  the  last  day  of  the  Con- 
vention. Innes,  the  eminent  lawyer,  spoke  then  for  the  first 
time,  bringing  all  his  powers  of  intellect  to  bear  in  favor  of 
the  new  government ;  while  the  clear-headed,  conservative 
Tyler  answered  him  in  a  zealous  pica  for  the  liberties 
of  the  States.  Other  speeches  were  made  by  less  prominent 
members,  Patrick  Henry  and  Edmund  Randolph  closing  the 
debate.  The  latter  made  a  solemn  justification  of  himself 
for  the  benefit  of  "  some  future  annalist."  The  vote  was 
then  taken  on  a  resolution  for  previous  amendments,  and 
It  passed  in  the  negative,  eighty  to  eighty-eight.  The  reso- 
lution  of  ratification  with  subsequent  amendments  passed  in 
the  affirmative,  eighty-nine  for  it  and  seventy-nine  against  it. 
Two  more  days  were  taken  up  with  the  work  of  preparing 
and  voting  on  the  form  of  ratification  and  amendments. 
Though  the  committee  named  to  prepare  the  form  of  ratifi- 
cation was  a  purely  Federalist  one,  consisting  of  Randolph, 

*  *'  Debates  of  the  VirginU  Convention/*  Robertson.    Appendix  iii. 


THE  CONSTITUTION  RATIFIED.  2/1 

Nicholas,  Madison,  Marshall,  and  Corbin,  yet  they  stated  in 
unmistakable  terms  the  doctrine  of  State  sovereignty  in 
the  assertion  that  the  "  powers  granted  under  the  Consti- 
tution, being  derived  from  the  people  of  the  United  States, 
may  be  resumed  by  them  whensoever  the  same  shall  be  per- 
verted to  their  injury  or  oppression."  The  "  people  "  here 
meant  precisely  what  it  meant  in  the  preamble  to  the  Con- 
stitution as  expounded  by  Madison,  "not  the  people  as 
composing  one  great  body,  but  the  people  as  composing 
thirteen  sovereignties."  Virginia  here  declares  the  right  of 
secession,  as  a  correlative  of  accession,  for  all  of  the  thirteen 
sovereignties.  The  committee  to  prepare  amendments  con- 
sisted of  the  prominent  members  of  both  parties,  including 
on  the  one  side  Mason,  Henry,  and  Grayson,  and  on  the 
other  Madison,  Marshall,  and  Edmund  Randolph.  George 
Wythe,  as  chairman  of  this  committee,  reported  a  bill  of 
rights  and  amendments  on  the  27th.  There  were  twenty  ar- 
ticles in  the  former  paper,  and  twenty  amendments  proposed, 
and  they  correspond  in  substance,  with  one  or  two  excep- 
tions, to  those  agreed  on  by  the  Committee  of  Opposition, 
as  may  be  seen  by  comparing  them  with  the  drafts  among 
George  Mason's  papers.  The  Convention  adjourned  on  the 
27th  of  June.  The  hard-fought  battle  was  over,  but  the 
victory  was  not  altogether  with  the  Federalists.  They  had 
been  forced  to  concede  most  of  the  amendments  they  had 
so  strenuously  opposed,  though  they  were  not  made  a  con- 
dition precedent  to  ratification.  The  Convention  had 
pledged  its  delegates  to  the  first  Congress  under  the  new 
government  to  recommend  to  its  consideration  the  objections 
of  the  Antifcdcralists  and  their  amendments  ;  the  latter  to 
be  acted  upon  as  the  Constitution  required.  The  expedi- 
ency plea  put  forward  by  Edmund  Randolph,  that  it  was  a 
question  of  "  union  or  no  union,"  as  eight  States  had  al- 
ready ratified  the  compact,  no  doubt  had  its  effect  on  the 
weak  and  the  wavering  in  the  Convention,  and  brought  over 
the  small  majority  to  the  Federalists. 

Madison  wrote  to  Jefferson  on  the  24th  of  July  from  New 


272      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

York,  where  he  had  gone  to  attend  Congress,  telling  his 
correspondent  of  the  last  days  of  the  Convention  in  Virginia. 
He  anticipates  no  "  irregular  opposition  to  the  system."  He 
adds: 

*' What  local  eruptions  may  be  occasioned  by  ill-timed  or  rigor- 
ous executions  of  the  treaty  of  peace  against  British  debts,  I  will 
not  pretend  to  say.  But  although  the  leaders,  particularly  Henry 
and  Mason,  will  give  no  countenance  to  popular  violence,  it  is  not 
to  be  inferred  that  they  are  reconciled  to  the  event,  or  will  give 
it  a  positive  support.  On  the  contrary,  both  of  them  declared 
they  could  not  go  that  length,  and  an  attempt  was  made  under 
their  auspices  to  induce  the  minority  to  sign  an  address  to  the 
people,  which  if  it  had  not  been  defeated  by  the  general  modera- 
tion of  the  party,  would  probably  have  done  mischief.  Among  a 
variety  of  expedients  employed  by  the  opponents  to  gain  prose- 
lytes, Mr.  Henry  first,  and  after  him  Col.  Mason,  introduced  the 
opinions  expressed  in  a  letter  from  you  to  a  correspondent  (Mr. 
Donald  or  Skipwith  I  believe)  and  endeavored  to  turn  the  influ- 
ence of  your  name  even  against  parts  of  which  I  knew  you  ap- 
proved." ' 

Jeflferson  had  written  that  he  wished  for  a  bill  of  rights 
and  amendments.  And  he  had  made  the  suggestion  that 
.  the  object  could  be  obtained  in  this  way;  the  nine  first  Con. 
ventions  by  adopting  the  Constitution  would  secure  the 
good  that  it  contained,  and  the  four  latest  Conventions, 
whichever  they  might  be,  by  refusing  to  accede  to  it  until 
amendments  were  secured,  would  force  the  others  to  assent 
to  them.  Patrick  Henry,  and  it  seemed  George  Mason  also, 
though  of  this  Robertson  gives  us  no  intimation,  very  natu- 
rally counting  Jefferson  among  the  Ant  {federalists,  had 
sought  to  secure  in  the  Convention  any  strength  that  might 
be  obtained  by  bringing  forward  his  views.  But,  as  Henry 
pointed  out,  Jefferson's  advice  could  not  be  followed,  unless 
they  were  certain  as  to  the  course  of  the  New  Hampshire 
Convention  then  in  session  :   "  They  tell  us,"  said  Henry,  in 

'  "Writings  of  Madison,"  vol.  i.,  p.  405. 


I 


POLICY  SUGGESTED  BY  JEFFERSON.  273 

a  speech  made  the  12th  of  June,  "that  from  the  most  au- 
thentic accounts,  New  Hampshire  will  adopt  it  [the  Consti- 
tution]. Where  then  will  four  States  be  found  to  reject  it, 
if  we  adopt  it  ?  Do  not  gentlemen  see,  that  if  we  adopt, 
under  the  idea  of  following  Mr.  Jefferson's  opinion,  we 
amuse  ourselves  with  the  shadow,  while  the  substance  is 
given  away?  If  Virginia  be  for  adoption,  what  States  will 
be  left,  of  sufficient  respectability  and  importance,  to  secure 
amendments  by  their  rejection  ? "  As  New  Hampshire 
adopted  the  Constitution  on  the  21st  of  Juhe,  she  made  the 
ninth  State,  and  the  four  States  that  remained,  containing 
rnore  than  a  third  of  the  population  of  the  thirteen,  would 
have  been  able,  as  Jefferson  said,  to  secure  amendments  by  re- 
fusing to  ratify  the  compact  without  them.  Virginia's  impor- 
tance in  the  Confederacy  we  are  made  to  realize  by  Grigsby's 
statement  of  statistics :  "  Her  population  was  over  three- 
fourths  of  all  that  of  New  England.  It  was  not  far  from 
double  that  of  Pennsylvania.  It  was  not  far  from  three  times 
that  of  New  York.  It  was  over  three-fourths  of  all  the  popu- 
lation of  the  Southern  States ;  .  .  .  and  it  was  more  than 
a  fifth  of  the  population  of  the  whole  Union."  '  Unfortu- 
nately the  slow  methods  of  transportation  at  that  day  did 
not  admit  of  the  news  of  New  Hampshire's  action  reaching 
Richmond  before  the  adjournment  of  the  Convention.  The 
intelligence  was  received  in  New  York  on  the  24th,  and  not 
until  the  last  day  of  June  or  ist  of  July  was  it  known  in 
Richmond  by  an  express  sent  from  Hamilton  to  Madison. 

In  the  letter  of  Madison's  given  above,  reference  is  made 
to  an  address  prepared  by  Mason  and  Henry  to  be  distributed 
among  the  people  for  their  signatures.  No  trace  of  such  a 
paper  is  to  be  found,  nor  is  there  any  mention  elsewhere  of 
such  a  design  on  the  part  of  the  two  great  leaders  of  the 
opposition.  On  the  contrary,  an  anecdote  has  been  pre- 
served, which  represents  Patrick  Henry  as  quelling  the  mani- 
festation of  feeling  among  the  Antifederalists  which  would 
lead  them  to  obstruct  the  new  government : 

*  *'  History  of  the  Virginia  Federal  Convention,"  p.  8. 
vol.  ii — 18 


274     ^^^^  ^^^  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON, 

*'  In  the  evening  of  the  day  of  the  final  vote,  General  Meade 
and  Mr.  Cabell  assembled  the  discontents  in  the  old  Senate  Cham- 
ber, and  after  a  partial  organization  of  the  party,  a  deputation 
was  sent  to  Patrick  Henry  inviting  him  to  take  the  chair.  The 
venerable  patriot  accepted.  Understanding  that  it  was  their 
purpose  to  concert  a  plan  of  resistance  to  the  operations  of  the 
Federal  government,  he  addressed  the  meeting  with  his  accus- 
tomed animation  upon  important  occasions  ;  observing  he  had 
done  his  duty  strenuously,  in  opposing  the  Constitution,  in  the 
proper place^ — and  with  all  the  powers  he  possessed.  The  question 
had  been  fully  discussed  and  settled,  and  that  as  true  and  faith- 
ful republicans,  they  had  all  better  go  home,  etc." ' 

The  General  Assembly,  which  met  in  extra  session,  called 
together  to  consider  a  remonstrance  sent  them  by  the  Court 
of  Appeals,  remained  in  Richmond  from  the  23d  to  the  30th 
of  June.  The  governor  and  many  delegates  were  members 
of  the  Convention.  But  while  the  latter  was  in  session 
their  attendance,  of  course,  on  its  important  deliberations 
prevented  them  from  taking  their  seats  in  the  Assembly* 
And  in  this  connection,  a  treacherous  action  is  charged 
upon  Edmund  Randolph,  which  went  far  to  secure  the 
federal  triumph  in  the  Convention.  George  Mason,  as 
a  member  of  the  Assembly,  was  doubtless  present  there 
after  the  27th,  and  some  resolutions  of  his,  evidently 
written  to  be  laid  before  the  House,  are  found  among  his 
papers,  though  there  is  no  trace  of  them  on  the  journal  of 
the  Assembly.  They  reflect  severely  on  the  action  of 
Edmund  Randolph,  the  executive,  who  is  accused  of  sup- 
pressing important  papers  in  order  to  further  the  cause  of 
the  Federalists  in  Virginia.  Madison  and  others  had  ac- 
cused the  opposition  of  artifices  to  bring  about  their  object, 
though  what  these  were  does  not  clearly  appear.  The 
counter-charge  made  by  the  other  party  it  is  difficult  to  dis- 
prove. Randolph,  it  was  said,  had  delayed  his  official  letter 
to  Governor  Clinton,  of  New  York,  transmitting  the  pro- 
ceedings of  the  Virginia  Assembly  concerning  the  proposed 

'  Southern  Literary  Messenj^^  vol.  i.,  p.  332.      MSS.  of  late  David  Meade 
Randolph. 


MASON'S  RESOLUTIONS  OF  CENSURE.  275 

Convention,  from  December  until  the  following  March. 
And  a  letter  Clinton  had  written  to  the  Governor  of  Vir- 
ginia in  reply,  "  on  the  subject  of  a  free  and  cordial  inter- 
course and  communication  of  sentiments "  between  the 
Conventions  of  the  two  States,  was  not  only  withheld  by 
Randolph  from  the  Convention,  but  was  not  laid  before  the 
Assembly  until  after  the  Convention  had  ratified  t/ie  Consti- 
tution. The  following  is  a  copy  of  the  resolutions  of  censure. 
In  the  original  draft  there  are  some  erasures  and  interlinea- 
tions not  materially  affecting  the  substance  of  the  paper. 

**  Resolved,  that  the  official  letter  from  his  Excellency,  George 
Clinton,  Esquire,  Governor  of  the  State  of  New  York,  dated  March 
the  17^^}  to  his  Excellency  Edmund  Randolph,  Esquire, 

Governor  of  this  Commonwealth,  on  the  subject  of  a  free  and 
cordial  intercourse  and  communication  of  sentiments  between 
the  Conventions  of  the  States  of  New  York  and  Virginia  upon  the 
new  constitution  of  government  recommended  by  the  late  Federal 
Convention,  which  letter  was  laid  before  the  General  Assembly  on 
the  day  of  this  instant  June,  ought  to  have  been  laid  before 

the  Convention  of  this  Commonwealth  at  their  first  meeting,  for 
their  consideration.  Resolved,  that  by  the  said  letter's  being  with- 
held from  the  Convention  of  this  Commonwealth  the  Convention 
hath  been  precluded  from  exercising  their  judgment  upon  the  ex- 
pediency of  so  important  a  measure  as  that  mentioned  in  the  said 
letter  from  his  Excellency  Governor  Clinton. 

"  Resolved  that  a  committee  of  be  chosen  by  ballot,  to  wait 

on  his  Excellency  Edmund  Randolph,  Esquire,  to  know  his  reasons 
for  not  laying  the  said  letter  before  the  delegates  of  the  people  of 
this  Commonwealth  in  the  late  Convention,  as  well  as  for  delaying 
to  lay  the  same  before  the  General  Assembly  until  the  day  after 
the  ratification  of  the  new  constitution  of  government ;  and  also  to 
enquire  from  what  causes  the  official  letter  from  Governor  Ran- 
dolph to  Governor  Clinton,  transmitting  the  proceedings  of  the 
General  Assembly  in  the  last  session  concerning  the  Convention  of 
Virginia,  was  delayed  from  the  day  of  December  to  the 

day  of  March  in  its  conveyance  to  New  York,  and  that  the  said 
committee  make  report  of  their  proceedings  therein  to  the  General 
Assembly."  * 

'  Mason  Papers. 


2/6     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON, 

The  letter  of  Governor  Randolph  dated  December  27, 
1787,  is  preserved  among  the  Clinton  papers,  and  is  endorsed 
in  George  Clinton's  handwriting :  "  Letter  from  Gov.  Ran- 
dolph, of  the  27th  Dec,  1787,  with  act  respecting  Conven- 
tion. Ansd.  8th  May,  1788."  There  is  no  statement  as  to 
when  the  letter  was  received.  But  in  a  letter  from  Clinton 
to  John  Dawson,  a  member  of  the  opposition,  written  the 
following  December,  Governor  Clinton,  in  reference  to  the 
legislature  then  in  session,  says : 

"  The  letter  of  the  Legislature  of  Virginia  is  not  yet  received  and 
I  am  not  without  apprehensions  that  measures  may  be  taken,  to 
retard  the  delivery  of  it  so  as  to  defeat  its  utility.  You  will  not,  I 
am  persuaded,  ascribe  my  suspicion  on  this  occasion  to  an  undue 
degree  of  jealousy  when  you  recollect  the  circumstance  respecting 
my  letter  which  was  laid  before  your  Convention.' 


>»  1 


This  letter,  as  we  have  seen,  was  not  laid  before  the 
Convention,  but  was  written  for  that  purpose.  And  instead 
of  being  written  in  March,  as  George  Mason's  resolutions 
state,  it  was  written  in  May,  unless,  indeed,  there  was  a 
March  letter  of  which  there  is  now  no  trace.  But  Clinton's 
endorsement  on  Randolph's  letter  would  seem  to  be  conclu- 
sive, as  to  the  May  letter  being  the  one  referred  to  in  the 
resolutions,  and  its  context  bears  out  this  conclusion.  It  was 
as  follows : 

"  New  York.  8th  May.  1788. 
"  Sir, 

"Your  Excellency's  letter  of  the  27th  of  December,  although  it 
appears  to  have  been  committed  to  the  post  office  at  Richmond,  did 
not  come  to  my  hands  until  the  7th  of  March.  The  Act  enclosed 
was  immediately  communicated  to  the  legislature,  but  it  was  after 
they  had  passed  their  resolutions  for  calling  a  Convention,  and  so 
near  the  close  of  their  sessions,  that  no  order  was  taken  in  conse- 
quence of  it. 

"  The  system  of  government  proposed  by  the  Federal  Convention, 
is  an  object  of  such  vast  importance  to  the  happiness  of  America 

*  Clinton  Papers.  New  York  Historical  Society. 


GOVERNOR   CLINTON'S  LETTER.  277 

that  it  appears  to  me  essential  that  the  people  of  the  different 
States  cultivate  and  cherish  the  most  friendly  sentiments  towards 
each  other,  especially  during  their  deliberations  on  that  interesting 
subject.  The  Convention  of  this  State  are  to  meet  at  Poughkeepsie 
on  the  17  th  of  June,  to  take  the  proposed  system  into  considera- 
tion, and  I  am  persuaded  they  will  with  great  cordiality  hold  a 
communication  with  any  sister  State  on  the  important  subject,  and 
especially  with  one  so  respectable  in  point  of  importance,  ability 
and  patriotism  as  Virginia.  I  think  I  may  venture  to  assure  your 
Excellency,  that  the  people  of  this  State  are  disposed  to  keep  up 
that  friendly  intercourse,  and  preserve  that  unanimity  respecting 
any  great  change  of  government,  which  appears  to  be  the  object  of 
the  Act  of  your  legislature,  and  which  it  is  the  duty  of  every  good 
man  to  promote  and  cherish,  and  I  have  no  doubt  but  that  our 
Convention  will  possess  the  same  sentiments. 

''As  the  session  of  your  Convention  will  take  place  before  that  of 
this  State,  they  will,  I  presume,  commence  the  measures  for  hold- 
ing such  communications  as  shall  be  deemed  necessary.  I  cannot 
refrain  from  expressing  regret  that  a  similar  conduct  has  not  been 
observed  by  the  States  who  have  already  had  the  proposed  system 
under  consideration.  Friendly  communications  on  the  subject,  and 
temperate  discussions  would,  it  is  to  be  presumed,  have  had  a  most 
happy  tendency  in  accommodating  it  much  more  to  the  sentiment 
and  wishes  of  the  people  of  America  than  is  likely  to  be  the  case 
in  the  form  it  is  offered  by  the  General  Convention,  and  acceded 
to  by  some  of  the  States.  Should  it  be  adopted  by  small  majorities 
in  the  larger  States  we  cannot  reasonably  hope  it  will  operate  so  as 
to  answer  the  salutary  purposes  designed.  As  I  have  no  direction 
from  the  legislature  on  the  subject  of  your  communication,  your 
Excellency  will  be  pleased  to  consider  this  letter  as  expressive  of 
my  own  sentiments,  but  I  have  at  the  same  time  a  well-founded 
confidence  that  a  majority  of  the  people  of  the  State  over  which  I 
have  the  honor  to  preside  will  concur  in  them." ' 

Randolph's  letter  "  appeared  to  have  been  committed  to  the 
post-office  at  Richmond,"  but  when  it  was  put  in  the  post- 
office,  or  where  the  detention  occurred,  must  remain  a  mystery. 
Edmund  Randolph  wrote  to  Clinton  in  August,  asking  him 

*  •*  Life  of  Edmund  Randolph/'     M.  D.  Conway,  p.  no. 


2/3      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON, 

to  look  at  his  letter  enclosing  the  law  **  concerning  our  late 
Convention."  He  speaks  of  the  report  in  Richmond,  that  it 
had  been  withheld  "  for  a  considerable  time  ** :  "  The  back 
of  my  letter,"  he  adds,  "  will  show  the  day  on  which  it  was 
put  in  the  post-office ;  and  I  am  desirous  of  knowing  the 
date  which  is  impressed  by  the  postmaster.  If  your  Excel- 
lency can  inform  me  of  any  reasons  such  as  your  absence 
from  town,  etc.,  which  could  have  prevented  the  letter  from 
reaching  your  hands,  as  soon  as  it  ought,  iV^H  thank  you  to 
add  them."  * 

This  long  delay  of  two  months  and  eleven  days  prevented 
the  message  from  Virginia  reaching  New  York  until  after 
the  Legislature  of  that  State  had  concluded  their  business 
and  named  a  date  for  the  meeting  of  their  Convention. 
The  Legislature  of  Virginia  had  adjourned  also,  so  that 
Clinton  could  make  no  communication  to  them.  There  is 
every  reason  to  believe  that  had  this  resolution  from  Virginia 
reached  New  York  in  the  proper  time,  the  two  Conventions 
would  have  co-operated  and  the  Antifederalists  would  have 
gained  previous  amendments  in  both  States.  The  first  reso- 
lutions on  the  subject  of  the  Convention,  it  will  be  remem- 
bered, passed  the  House  of  Delegates  on  the  25th  of 
October.  These,  Governor  Randolph  writes  Clinton,  were 
transmitted  to  him  on  the  14th  of  November ;  the  second 
resolutions,  which  Randolph  calls  the  "  law,"  were  passed  on 
the  30th  of  November  and  sent  on  to  New  York  the  27th  of 
December.  Here  was  a  delay  of  twenty-seven  days,  of 
which  there  is  no  explanation,  in  sending  on  the  Virginia 
resolves  to  New  York.  But  the  Federalists  in  the  Legisla- 
ture of  Virginia  opposed  one  of  these  resolutions,  the  one 
which  their  opponents  deemed  of  the  first  importance.  This 
was  in  reference  to  sending  "  a  deputy  or  deputies  to  confer 
with  the  Convention  or  Conventions  of  any  other  State  or 
States  in  the  Union."  Richard  Henry  Lee  in  a  letter  to 
General  Lamb  of  June  27th,  replying  to  one  from  the  latter 
of  the  1 8th  of  May,  "  but  this  day  received,"  laments  that  it 

>  IbU.^  p.  114. 


k 


SOCIETY  OF  THE  FEDERAL  REPUBLICANS,  279 

did  not  reach  him  sooner.  He  thought  the  plan  of  cor- 
respondence proposed  by  the  society  of  which  Lamb  was 
chairman,  "  would  have  produced  salutary  consequences ;  as 
it  seeins  to  Jiave  been  t/ie  idea  of  our  Assembly  w/ien  they  sent 
the  proposed  plan  to  a  Convention''  *  The  mails  seem  to  have 
been  tampered  with  in  more  than  one  instance,  in  the  inter- 
ests of  the  Federalists.  Governor  Clinton  timed  his  reply 
to  the  communication  from  Virginia  so  that  it  should  reach 
Governor  Randolph  before  the  opening  of  the  Convention. 
A  letter  dated  the  8th  of  May  ought  to  have  been  received 
in  Richmond  about  the  15th.  It  was  very  natural  that 
George  Mason  should  have  supposed  that  it  had  been  re- 
ceived at  that  date.  Randolph,  in  communicating  it  to  the 
Legislature,  as  he  asserts,  on  the  23d,  the  day  the  Assembly 
met,  says  that  "  immediately  upon  receiving  "  it  he  laid  it 
before  the  council-board  and  requested  "  their  opinion 
whether  it  was  of  a  public  or  private  nature.  They  conceived 
it  to  be  of  the  former  description,  and  therefore  it  is  now  for- 
warded." *  The  inference  is  that  there  had  been  but  a  short 
interval  between  its  consideration  by  the  council  and  its 
transmission  to  the  Assembly.  Who  was  responsible  for  its 
delay  from  the  15th  of  May,  when  it  should  have  reached 
Richmond,  and  its  reception  by  the  Governor  about  the  22d 
of  June  ?  Even  then  there  was  time,  had  Randolph  desired 
to  act  an  upright  part,  to  have  brought  it  before  the  Con- 
vention, for  which  it  was  intended.  There  was  no  quorum 
in  the  House  until  the  24th,  and  none  in  the  Senate  until 
the  following  day.  The  Governor's  message  and  its  im- 
portant  enclosure,  the  journal  says,  was  only  partly  read  on 
the  24th  and  laid  over  till  the  next  day.  Good  care  was 
taken  evidently  that  the  character  of  Clinton's  letter  should 
not  be  known  until  after  the  Convention  had  ratified  the 
Constitution  on  the  25th.  The  Legislature  was  in  sympathy 
with  the  opposition,  and  Governor  Randolph  and  his  con- 
federates feared  its  influence  upon  the  Convention.    Accord- 

'  "  Life  and  Times  of  General  Lamb,"  Isaac  Q.  Leake,  p.  306. 
*  "  Life  of  Edmund  Randolph,**  M.  D.  Conway,  p.  112. 


280     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

ing  to  George  Mason,  the  letter  of  Clinton  was  not  read  in 
the  Assembly  until  the  26th.  Clinton's  communication  is 
not  mentioned  in  the  journal,  which  states  only  that  a  letter 
from  the  Governor  enclosing  "  sundry  letters  and  papers  '* 
was  laid  before  the  House  on  the  24th  and  **  partly  read  '* 
that  day,  and  the  reading  resumed  on  the  25th.  On  this 
day  a  letter  from  the  Governor,  stating  **  several  other  maU 
ters^'  was  received,  partly  read,  and  the  reading  concluded 
on  the  26th.* 

The  Society  in  New  York  of  the  Federal  Republicans  car- 
ried on  a  secret  correspondence  with  the  opposition  leaders 
in  the  Virginia  Convention,  as  we  have  seen.  And  on  the 
2 1st  of  June,  Governor  Clinton  wrote  from  the  New  York 
Convention  to  General  Lamb,  telling  him  that  papers  and 
letters  from  Virginia,  of  which  Colonel  Oswald  had  been  the 
bearer,  had  been  communicated  to  the  Committee  of  Oppo- 
sition in  that  body,  and  he  now  enclosed  to  Lamb  for  him 
to  forward,  a  letter  from  them  "  to  Colonel  Mason,  Chairman 
of  the  Virginia  Committee."  And  he  adds :  "  The  letter  to 
Colonel  Mason,  you  will  observe,  is  put  under  cover  to  Mr. 
George  Fleming,  merchant  of  Richmond,  as  advised  in  Mr. 
Mason's  letter." "  No  copy  of  this  letter  has  been  preserved, 
and  it  is  not  probable  that  it  reached  its  destination  before 
the  Virginia  Convention  adjourned,  if  Colonel  Mason  re- 
ceived it  at  all.  So  the  Virginia  Convention  was  precluded 
from  all  opportunity  of  concerting  measures  with  the  Con- 
vention in  New  York.  And  the  ratification  in  Virginia, 
without  previous  amendments,  was  followed  by  the  same 
course  in  New  York  a  month  later.  North  Carolina,  all 
honor  be  given  her,  refused  to  ratify  the  Constitution  with- 
out amendments,  and  closed  her  Convention,  August  ist, 
with  the  passage  of  resolutions  to  this  effect.  Governor 
Clinton  had  sent  a  circular  letter  from  the  New  York  Con- 
vention to  the  several  States,  asking  for  another  General 
Convention,  to  be  procured  in  the  constitutional  manner. 

'  Journal  of  the  Virginia  Assembly. 

'  *'  Life  and  Times  of  General  Lamb/*  Isaac  Q.  Leake,  p.  315. 


COLONEL  OSWALD  AND  LETTERS  OF  *'  CENTINELr  281 

In  Pennsylvania,  the  able  letters  of  "  Centinel/*  the  Junius 
of  this  contest,  were  addressed  to  the  country  about  this  time 
through  the  columns  of  Colonel  Oswald's  paper,  the  Inde- 
pendent Gazetteety  in  reply  to  the  Federalist^  and  to  James 
Wilson.  Of  the  latter,  this  clever  Antifederalist  writer  said, 
he  could  **  bewilder  truth  in  all  the  mazes  of  sophistry,  and 
render  the  plainest  propositions  problematical.**  The  "  Cen- 
tinel  *'  letters  called  attention  to  the  bribery  of  the  post- 
riders  in  Pennsylvania  by  the  Federalists,  who  in  this  way 
held  back  New  York  papers  of  importance  which  might  have 
Influenced  the  Convention  in  the  former  State.  The  short- 
hand writer  in  the  Pennsylvania  Convention  was  also  bought 
up  by  the  Federalists  and  only  the  speeches  of  Wilson  and 
the  one  other  leader  of  his  party  in  this  body  were  published, 
a  flagrant  act  of  political  corruption.  It  has  been  noticed 
that  the  ten  amendments  afterwards  added  to  the  Consti- 
tution bore  a  marked  resemblance  to  the  fifteen  amendments 
offered  by  the  minority  in  the  Pennsylvania  Convention. 
And  it  is  suggested  "that  when  Madison,  in  1789,  drew  up 
the  amendments  for  the  House  of  Representatives,  he  made 
use  of  those  offered  by  the  minority  of  the  Convention  of 
Pennsylvania.**'  These  were  based,  however,  on  the  ob- 
jections of  George  Mason  as  given  in  the  address  of  the 
Antifederalists  in  the  Pennsylvania  Legislature.  Massachu- 
setts, the  first  State  to  propose  subsequent  amendments 
through  her  Convention,  no  doubt  took  the  Pennsylvania 
amendments  as  a  basis  for  her  own,  as  in  Virginia,  George 
Mason  says  the  opposition  had  before  them  the  Massachu- 
setts amendments,  as  doubtless  had  been  the  case  in  Mary- 
land and  South  Carolina.  New  Hampshire  in  her  twelve 
amendments,  acted,  apparently,  without  concert  with  Vir- 
ginia, but  the  thirty-one  amendments  of  New  York  and  the 
twenty-six  of  North  Carolina  were  framed  with  the  Virginia 
amendments  as  a  basis,  in  addition  to  those  that  had  gone 
before.     The  Antifederalists  were  substantially  in   accord 

'  ••  Pennsylvania  and  the  Federal  Convention,  1 787-1 788,"  edited  by  J.  B./ 
McMaster  and  F.  D.  Stone,  p.  19.  ' 


282      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

throughout  the  country,  except  in  case  of  the  amendment 
desired  by  the  Southern  States,  requiring  a  two-thirds  vote 
to  pass  commercial  laws.  This  point  might  have  been 
settled,  as  George  Mason  believed,  in  a  second  General  Con- 
vention, had  Virginia  united  with  North  Carolina  in  making 
it  a  condition  of  ratification.  Though  it  was  not  one  of  the 
amendments  proposed  by  South  Carolina,  as  it  would  have 
unhinged  the  "  bargain  "  to  which  she  was  a  party  in  the 
Federal  Convention,  it  was  well  known  that  her  people  gen- 
erally would  have  welcomed  it. 

If  it  is  as  a  member  of  the  Federal  Convention  only  that 
George  Mason  excites  a  national  interest,  and  his  autograph 
is  sought  for  by  collectors,  it  is  in  his  twofold  character  of 
the  framer  of  her  first  form  of  government,  and  the  consistent 
advocate  of  her  State  sovereignty  and  reserved  rights,  that 
he  has  a  claim  upon  Virginia's  regard  and  gratitude.  Not 
Virginia  alone,  however,  but  all  the  States  should  recognize 
here,  in  George  Mason's  States-rights  record,  his  patriotic 
wisdom  and  foresight.  Certainly  the  South  has  had  cause 
to  know  him  as  the  advocate  of  its  best  interests.  Undoubt- 
edly had  he  and  his  party  secured  all  that  they  strove  for  in 
1788,  there  would  have  been  no  war  in  1861. 

Judge  Chamberlain  in  a  recent  paper  read  before  the 
American  Historical  Association  makes  the  admission  that 
the  acceptance  of  the  Constitution  of  1787  was  the  **  triumph 
of  the  legitimate  successors  of  the  Anti-Revolutionary  party 
of  1775,"  and  he  adds  that  "  the  Revolutionary  questions 
from  1789  to  i860  caused  dissatisfaction  in  the  States  of  the 
South  as  great  nearly  as  that  between  the  colonies  and  Great 
Britain  from  1763  to  1775."  He  enumerates  four  points 
which  were  grievances  under  the  colonial  system,  and  which 
remained  under  altered  conditions,  engrafted  on  the  govern- 
ment  of  the  American  Union.  The  colonists  had  complained 
of  the  King's  prerogatives  ;  under  the  Federal  Constitution 
the  Executive  was  clothed  with  still  greater  powers.  The 
commercial  laws  enacted  by  Parliament  had  been  felt  to  be 
burdensome  and  unjust ;  yet  by  the  provision  of  the  Con- 


BILL  OF  RIGHTS  AND  AMENDMENTS.  283 


^GHTS  AND 


itn      ,, 


stitution  relating  to  navigation  laws.  Congress  was  enabled 
to  pass  in  its  first  session  an  act ''  similar  in  principle  and  de-  \ 
sign  to  acts  of  Charles  II.,"  which  with  some  modifications  ' 
is  still  in  force.     So  with  the  question  of  taxation  without 
adequate  representation,  as  complained  of  in  some  of  the 
territories.    And  lastly,  the  powers  of  the  judiciary  under 
the  royal  government  were  not  sufficiently  controlled  by  the  , 
people ;  the  Constitution  increased  this  grievance  "  to  an  ' 
extent  unknown  to  the  colonies."    This  condition  of  things* 
to  which  the  Federal  Convention  reduced  the  States  "was 
brought  about  only  with  great  difficulty," says  Judge  Cham- 
berlain, "  for  there  was  a  large  minority  led  by  such  men  as . 
George  Mason,  Elbridge  Gerry,  and  Samuel  Adams,  who 
strenuously  contended  that  in  adopting  the  Constitution  of 
1787  the   people  surrendered  everything,  except  indepen- 
dence, for  which  they  had  fought  seven  years."  * 

George  Mason,  as  chairman  of  the  Committee  of  Oppo- 
sition in  the  Virginia  Convention,  left  among  his  papers 
two  drafts  of  amendments  and  a  draft  of  a  bill  of  rights, 
with  several  forms  of  a  resolve  that  was  to  introduce  them.* ' 
This  declaration  of  rights,  which  was  based,  as  were  the 
other  State  bills  of  rights,  on  the  early  paper  written  by 
George  Mason  in  1776,  is  substantially  the  same  as  that 
adopted  by  the  Convention,  with  the  exception  of  one 
important  clause  in  the  third  section.  This  was,  "  that 
whenever  any  government  shall  be  found  inadequate  or 
contrary  to  these  purposes,  [the  benefit,  etc.,  of  the  people] 
a  majority  of  the  community  hath  an  indubitable,  unalien- 
able, and  indefeasible  right  to  reform,  alter,  or  abolish  it, 
and  to  establish  another  in  such  manner  as  shall  be  judged 
most  conducive  to  the  public  weal." '  The  Constitution 
received  ten  amendments  in  the  two  years  succeeding  its 
adoption.  Of  these,  the  first  eight  correspond  to  the  eighth, 
eleventh,  thirteenth,  fourteenth,  fifteenth,  sixteenth,  seven- 
teenth, eighteenth,  and  twentieth   sections  of  the  bill  of 

'  "  Papers  of  the  American  Historical  Association,"  vol.  iii..  No.  i. 
•  Appendix  iv.  •  Ibid, 


284      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

■ 

rights  recommended  by  the  Virginia  Convention.  The 
ninth  amendment  corresponds  to  some  extent  with  Virginia's 
seventeenth  amendment,  while  the  tenth  amendment  ex- 
presses, though  not  in  identical  terms,  the  principle  of 
Virginia's  first  amendment.  These  two  amendments,  as  has 
been  sarcastically  observed,  "  meant  something  to  the  mind 
of  that  generation  ;  to  subsequent  generations  the  meaning 
depended  upon  degrees  of  latitude."  *  The  first  Virginia 
amendment,  as  it  was  formulated  by  George  Mason,  was 
taken  from  the  Articles  of  Confederation,  and  was  as  follows : 
"  That  each  State  in  the  Union  shall  retain  its  sovereignty, 
freedom,  and  independence,  and  every  power,  jurisdiction, 
and  right  which  is  not  by  this  Constitution  expressly  dele- 
gated to  the  Congress  of  the  United  States."  *  A  few  years 
later,  though  George  Mason  did  not  live  to  see  it,  his  argu- 
ments, to  some  extent,  bore  fruit  in  th^  eleventh  amendment, 
which  prohibits  suits  against  States  in  the  federal  courts. 
The  most  important  of  the  Antifederalist  amendments 
which  were  not  incorporated  in  the  Constitution,  related  to 
the  powers  of  Congress  in  regard  to  taxation,  navigation 
laws,  treaties,  and  the  regulation  of  elections ;  to  the  great 
powers  given  the  federal  judiciary,  and  to  certain  features 
in  the  composition  of  the  executive  office,  and  its  duration. 
•  The  iniquity  of  a  federal  election  law,  to  be  passed  by  a 
sectional  party,  which  has  recently  menaced  the  Southern 
States,  recalls  the  wise  provision  of  Virginia  in  her  sixteenth 
amendment  (taken  from  the  third  amendment  of  the  oppo- 
sition), in  which  the  true  intent  of  the  framers  of  the  Con- 
stitution is  clearly  stated  :  "  That  Congress  shall  not  alter, 
modify,  or  interfere  in  the  times,  places,  or  manner  of  hold- 
ing elections  for  senators  and  representatives,  or  either  of 
them,  except  when  the  legislature  of  any  State  shall  neglect, 
refuse,  or  be  disabled  by  invasion  or  rebellion  to  prescribe  the 
same."  *    This  was   one   of  the   questions   argued   in    The 

'  Afagatine  of  American  History^  vol.  xv.,  p.  589.     **  The  Virginia  Conven- 
tion, 1788,"  A.  W.  Clason. 
•  Appendix  iv. 
'  "  Debates  of  the  Virginia  Convention,"  Robertson. 


JEFFERSON  DAVIS  ON  GEORGE  MASON.  285 

Federalist f  and  Explained  there  in  accordance  with  the  Vir- 
ginia amendment.  The  first  step  in  violation  of  this  part  of 
the  Constitution  was  taken  in  1 871,  by  the  act  appointing 
federal  supervisors  of  elections  through  the  circuit  judges. 

Jefferson  Davis,  in  the  Senate  of  the  United  States  in 
i860,  referring  to  the  debates  in  the  Federal  Convention,  on 
giving  power  to  Congress  to  coerce  the  States,  pays  the 
following  tribute  to  George  Mason,  as  **  one  whose  wisdom, 
as  we  take  a  retrospective  view,  seems  to  me  marvellc/us." 
MnJDavis  says  of  him  :  "  Not  conspicuous  in  debate,  at  least 
not  among  the  names  which  first  occur  when  we  think  of  that 
bright  galaxy  of  patriots  and  statesmen,  he  was  the  man  who, 
above  all  others,  it  seems  to  me,  laid  his  finger  upon  every 
danger,  and  indicated  the  course  that  danger  was  to  take."  * 
One  of  the  great  dangers  which  George  Mason  had  foretold 
soon  made  itself  apparent,  the  beginning  of  a  course  of 
sectional  legislation  inflicting  great  injury  on  the  South. 
In  1800,  Jefferson  writes  :  "  While  the  navigating  and  pro- 
vision States,  who  are  the  majority,  can  keep  open  all  the 
markets,  or  at  least  sufficient  ones  for  their  objects,  the  cries 
of  the  tobacco  makers,  who  are  the  minority,  and  not  at  all 
in  favor,  will  hardly  be  listened ,  to."  And  comparing  the 
situation  to  the  fable  of  the  monkey  using  the  cat*s  paws,  he 
says:  "  It  shows  that  G.  Mason's  proposition  in  the  Conven- 
tion was  wise,  that  on  laws  regulating  commerce  two-thirds 
of  the  votes  should  be  requisite  to  pass  them."  *  Twenty- 
eight  years  later  this  was  the  result,  according  to  Benton : 

''  Under  federal  legislation  the  exports  of  the  South  have  been 
the  basis  of  the  federal  revenue.  Virginia,  the  two  Carolinas 
and  Georgia  defray  three-fourths  of  the  annual  expense  of  sup- 
porting the  federal  government ;  and  of  this  great  sum  nothing 
or  next  to  nothing  returns  to  them  in  shape  of  government  ex- 
penditures— it  flows  northward.  This  is  the  reason  why  wealth 
disappears  from  the  South  and  rises  up  in  the  North.  Federal 
legislation  does  all  this."' 

'  Speech  in  United  States  Senate,  May  7,  i860. 

'  **  Jefferson's  Works."  IL  A.  Washington,  vol.  vi.,  p.  323. 

*  Speech  in  United  States  Senate,  1825. 


286     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON, 

Direct  or  internal  taxation  the  Antifederalists  wished  to 
reserve  to  the  State  government  while  giving  up  external 
or  indirect  taxation  to  the  federal  government.  This  proved 
to  be  a  mistake,  and  it  was  through  the  tariff  that  the  South 
was  impoverished,  yet  the  eighth  Virginia  amendment  would 
have  secured  her  interests,  and  given  her  ''  an  absolute  gua- 
ranty of  power."  * 

How  much  Virginia  gave  up  when  she  entered  into  the 
Union  of  1787,  and  how  great  her  prosperity  had  been 
previously,  Grigsby  points  out  in  his  invaluable  history  of 
the  Convention  that  sealed  her  fate :  "  In  the  five  years  of 
peace,"  after  the  Revolution,  he  says,  "  our  tobacco,  grain, 
and  other  productions  of  the  soil  and  the  forest  maintained 
the  grandest  commerce  that  had  ever  spread  its  wings  from 
an  Anglo-Saxon  settlement  in  the  New  World  towards  the 
shores  of  the  Old,  and  such  as  was  never  seen  in  the  colony, 
and  such  as,  with  the  exception  of  a  short  period,  has  never 
been  seen  in  Virginia  since."  He  calls  attention  to  the 
instructive  fact  "  that  the  period  from  the  death  of  Charles 
the  First  in  16^  to  the  restoration  of  Charles  the  Second — 
a  period  of  nineteen  years — and  the  period  between  the 
peace  of  1783  and  the  adqption  of  the  Federal  Constitution 
of  1788 — a  space  of  five  years — have  been  the  most  pros- 
perous in  our  history ;  and  that  of  the  two  centuries  and 
a  half  of  Virginia  [this  was  written  in  1858]  it  was  during 
those  two  periods  only  she  enjoyed  the  benefits  of  a  trade 
regulated  by  her  own  authority,  unrestricted  and  untaxed."* 
The  mistake  of  the  Virginia  Federalists  was  in  the  false 
estimate  they  had  formed  of  the  general  condition  and 
commerce  of  Virginia : 

"It  led,  in  the  vain  hope  of  sudden  improvement,  to  the 
hasty  adoption  of  the  present  Federal  Constitution  without 
previous  amendments,  and  to  the  surrender  of  the  right  of  regu- 
lating its  commerce  by  the  greatest  State  of  the  confederation  to 
an  authority  beyond  its  control.     ...     It  destroyed  our  direct 

*  '*  Letters  and  Times  of  the  Tylers,"  Lyon  G.  Tyler,  vol.  i.,  p.  144. 

•  **  History  of  the  Virginia  Federal  Convention,"  p.  14. 


MISTAKE  OF  THE  VIRGINIA  FEDERALISTS.        287 

trade  with  foreign  powers.  It  banished  the  flag  of  Virginia  from 
the  seas.  Instead  of  building  and  manning  the  ships  which 
carried  the  product  of  our  labor  to  foreign  ports,  and  which 
brought  back  the  product  of  the  labor  of  others  to  our  own  ports, 
as  some  were  persuaded  to  believe  would  be  the  result  of  the 
change,  it  compelled  us  thenceforth  to  commit  our  produce  to 
the  ships  of  other  States,  and  to  receive  our  foreign  supplies 
through  other  ports  than  our  own.  It  brought  about  the  strange 
result  that,  instead  of  a  large  part  of  the  cost  of  defraying  the 
expenses  of  the  government  of  Virginia  being  derived  from  the 
duties  levied  upon  foreign  commerce,  these  duties,  though  levied 
upon  a  scale  unknown  in  that  age,  will  not  suffice  [in  1858]  to 
pay  the  expenses  of  collection  by  other  hands  than  our  own."  * 

In  the  last  quarter  of  a  century,  or  since  the  war,  the 
United  States  government  has  grown  rich  with  the  high 
tariflfs  which  it  has  imposed  upon  the  people  in  violation  of 
all  sound  economic  law ;  and  statesmen  and  social  reformers 
see  in  a  return  to  the  principle  of  the  early  Republic,  a  tariff 
for  revenue  only,  the  sole  cure  for  the  labor  troubles  of  the 
time.  "  Our  present  tariff  laws,"  wrote  the  Secretary  of  the 
Treasury  during  Cleveland's  administration,  "  are  a  needless 
oppression  instead  of  an  easy  burden.  All  our  customs 
revenue  might  be  collected  by  strictly  revenue  duties  upon 
a  few  score  articles,  instead  of  by  extravagant  or  prohibitory 
duties  upon  more  than  four  thousand  articles."*  In  that 
year,  1886,  there  were  a  million  idle  working-men  in  the 
land,  while  the  treasury  was  groaning  under  its  huge  surplus. 
The  political  situation  since  then  has  grown  steadily  worse, 
with  a  faction  in  power  opposed  to  every  measure  of  reform, 
and  seeking  to  dissipate  the  surplus  in  extravagant  schemes 
of  partisan  legislation.  During  the  century  that  has  passed 
since  the  formation  of  the  Union,  it  has  been  seen  that  the 
powers  of  Congress  under  the  "  necessary  and  proper " 
clause  of  the  Constitution  have  been  augmented  to  an 
alarming  extent.      The  Antifederalists  in  reprobating  the 

'  Ibid.^  p.  18. 

*  Letter  of  Secretary  Manning  to  President  Cleveland,  1886. 


288      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

"  sweeping  clause,"  as  they  termed  it,  were  wise  indeed,  in 
their  generation,  and  their  fears  of  centralization  have  been 
amply  justified.  The  Due  de  Noailles,  a  French  observer 
of  American  government,  points  out  that  the  constitutional 
limitations  of  the  legislative  power  have  been  almost  entirely 
neutralized  by  this  dangerous  clause.'  Our  great  Southern 
'sfatesnian,  Jefferson  Davis,  noting  the  tendency  to  central- 
ization which  is  the  outcome  of  the  unbridled  power  of 
Congress,  refers  to  Madison's  fear  "  when  the  Constitution 
was  being  formulated,  that  young  men  under  its  provisions 
would  not  care  to  enter  Congress,  preferring  the  finer  field 
opened  to  them  by  the  legislatures  of  the  sovereign  States. 
What  would  he  think  now,"  adds  President  Davis,  "  could 
he  return  to  earth  and  see  what  centralization  has  done  and 
is  doing?  What  would  be  his  feelings  when  he  saw  one 
house  of  Congress  passing  the  Blair  Educational  Bill,  while 
the  other  was  considering  and  finally  passing  a  bill  in  regard 
to  bogus  butter?  "  "  The  Senate,  it  was  believed,  would  by 
its  dignity  and  wisdom  balance  any  extravagant  or  inex- 
pedient legislation  in  the  larger  and  popular  branch  of 
Congress.  But  the  degeneracy  of  the  Senate  is  a  theme  for 
the  diatribes  of  the  American  political  philosopher.  To  a 
river  and  harbor  bill  the  Senate  attaches  "  indefensible 
jobs."  Of  a  canal  scheme,  which  would  construct  a  canal 
entirely  within  the  limits  of  a  single  State,  "  a  measure  that 
inaugurates  a  system  that  would  lead  to  the  most  prodigal 
extravagance — the  inauguration  of  a  class  of  legislation  that 
is  in  the  face  of  the  Constitution,  if  the  Constitution  means 
anything," "  the  Senate  is  the  patron.  And  the  Senate  is 
responsible  for  beginning  the  extravagant  pension  legislation 
which  has  become  one  of  the  crying  corruptions  of  the 
federal  government. 

One  of  George  Mason's  amendments  to  the  Constitution, 
which  was  not  included  among  those  adopted  by  the  Feder- 
alists of  the  Virginia  Convention,  is  as  follows  : 

*  "Cent  Ans  de  R^publique  aux  £tats-Unis,"  t.  i.,  p.  22q,  Paris,  1886. 

•  Southern  Bivouac  ^  August,  1886,  "Jefferson  Davis  at  Home." 
»  The  Nation,  July  15,  1886. 


k 


GEORGE  MASON'S  PREVISION.  289 

"  That  there  shall  be  a  constitutional,  responsible  Council, 
to  assist  in  the  administration  of  government,  with  the  power 
of  choosing  out  of  their  own  body  a  president,  who  in  case  of  the 
death,  resignation  or  disability  of  the  President  of  the  United 
States,  shall  act,  pro  tempore^  as  Vice  President,  instead  of  a  vice 
president  elected  in  the  manner  prescribed  by  the  Constitution  ; 
and  that  the  power  of  making  treaties,  appointing  ambassadors, 
other  public  ministers  and  consuls,  judges  of  the  Supreme  Courts, 
and  all  other  officers  of  the  United  States,  whose  appointments 
are  not  otherwise  provided  for  by  the  Constitution,  and  which 
shall  be  established  by  law,  be  vested  in  the  President  of  the 
United  States  with  the  assistance  of  the  Council  so  to  be  ap- 
pointed. But  all  treaties  so  made  or  entered  into  shall  be  sub- 
ject to  the  revision  of  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives 
for  their  ratification." ' 

The  fear  expressed  by  George  Mason,  that  in  case  no 
council  was  provided  for  the  President  one  would  grow  out 
of  the  great  departments,  **  the  worst  and  most  dangerous  of 
ail  ingredients  in  a  free  country,"  proved  to  be  prophetic,  as 
Washington  did  create  such  a  council,  and  suffered  its  mem- 
bers to  guide  his  actions.*  The  supervision  over  treaties 
which  the  Antifederalists  desired  for  the  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives is  to-day  as  much  a  living  issue  as  it  was  under  the 
first  administration.  The  House  asserted  its  right  in  the 
case  of  Jay's  treaty,  and  the  decision  left  the  matter  an 
open  question.  It  came  up  again  with  the  Louisiana  Pur- 
-chase  treaty;  and  lastly  in  1867,  when  the  purchase  of 
Alaska  was  made,  the  House  reaffirmed  its  privilege.  In 
the  bill  appropriating  the  amount  to  be  paid  for  the  new 
territory,  the  preamble  attached  to  it  in  the  House  stated 
that  the  stipulations  of  the  treaty  were  such  as  "  by  the 
Constitution  are  submitted  to  the  power  of  Congress  and 
over  which  Congress  has  jurisdiction  ;  and  it  being  for  such 
reasons  necessary  that  the  consent  of  Congress  should  be 
given  to  said  stipulations  before  the  same  can  have  full  force 
and  effect,"  etc.     The  Senate  refused  to  concur  in  this  pre- 

*  Appendix  iv. 

•  "  Life  of  Edmund  Randolph/'  M.  D.  Conway,  p.  139. 

vol.  ii — 19 


290     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

_ 

amble  and  substituted  another  which  was  violently  opposed, 
and  only  passed  at  length  by  a  very  small  majority,  many 
members  not  voting. 

The  amendment  in  regard  to  the  Executive,  "  That  no 
person  shall  be  capable  of  being  President  of  the  United 
States  for  more  than  eight  years  in  any  term  of  sixteen 
years,"  has  become,  it  would  seem,  an  unwritten  law,  to  be 
read  between  the  lines  of  the  constitutional  compact.  In 
connection  with  the  judiciary  system  of  the  United  States, 
a  direct  confirmation  of  George  Mason's  foresight  may  be 
noted  in  the  operation  of  the  federal  courts.  In  his  argu- 
ment on  the  subject  in  the  Virginia  Convention,  he  supposes 
a  case  and  says  that  even  if  a  ''  poor  man  should  be  able  to 
obtain  judgment  in  the  inferior  court,  for  the  greatest  injury, 
what  justice  can  he  get  on  appeal  ?  Can  he  go  four  hundred 
or  five  hundred  miles?  On  this  occasion  they  are  to  judge 
of  fact  as  well  as  law.  He  must  bring  his  witnesses  where  he 
is  not  known,  where  a  new  evidence  may  be  brought  against 
him,  of  which  he  never  heard  before  and  which  he  cannot 
contradict.**  Again  in  another  connection  he  says :  "  How 
will  a  poor  man  who  is  injured  or  dispossessed  unjustly, 
get  a  remedy  ?  Is  he  to  go  to  the  federal  court,  seven  or 
eight  hundred  miles  ?  He  might  as  well  give  his  claim  up. 
He  may  grumble,  but  finding  no  relief  he  will  be  con- 
tented." Owing  to  the  fee  .system  by  which  the  federal 
'  official  is  remunerated  instead  of  receiving  a  salary,  the  diffi- 
culty as  suggested  by  George  Mason  is  made  even  worse. 
The  compensation  of  the  commissioner  before  whom  the 
complaint  is  sworn  depends  on  the  number  of  warrants 
issued,  the  number  of  days  over  which  the  hearings  extend, 
and  the  number  of  witnesses  recognized.  A  recent  writer, 
who  calls  attention  to  this  matter,  says  : 

''  He  [the  commissioner]  and  the  marshal  can  readily  play  into 
each  other's  hands,  the  marshal  by  finding  cases  and  the  commis- 
sioner by  giving  the  marshal  processes  to  serve.  Then  usually 
one  commissioner  does  all  the  criminal  business  for  a  district  and 
offenders  may  be  taken  before  this  one  from  the  most  remote 


CONGRESS  AND  THE  SUPREME  COURT.  29I 

parts  of  the  district,  at  great  expense  to  the  United  States  and 
hardship  to  themselves,  as  they  are  called  on  to  find  bail  and 
counsel  where  they  are  strangers.  The  case  is  prejudged.  The 
prisoner  must  find  bail,  and  if  he  admits  guilt  he  must  stay 
in  jail.  .  .  .  He  may  be  in  jail  weeks,  waiting  bail  for  an 
o£fense  punishable  only  by  fine  or  a  small  term  of  imprisonment. 
If  tried  and  acquitted,  the  attorney  gets  twice  as  much  as  if 
he  pleads  guilty,  and  if  convicted  he  is  entitled  to  an  additional 
fee." ' 

George  Mason  in  the  Virginia  Convention  expressed  his 
belief  that  the  great  powers  given  the  federal  judiciary 
tended  to  destroy  the  State  governments.  In  18 19  we 
find  Jeflerson  writing  of  the  judiciary  as  **  on  every  occasion 
driving  us  into  consolidation."  He  described  them  at  one 
time  as  "the  corps  of  sappers  and  miners,  steadily  working 
to  undermine  the  independent  rights  of  the  States,  and  to 
consolidate  all  power  in  the  hands  of  that  government  in 
which  they  have  so  important  a  freehold  estate."  *  John 
Randolph  of  Roanoke,  agreed  with  Jeflerson  that  "  the 
judiciary  gravitates  towards  consolidation,"  and  he  consid- 
ered the  District  of  Columbia  "  to  be  the  novcroo  and  the 
Supreme  Court  to  be  the  lever  of  the  political  Archi- 
medes."" If  the  federal  judiciary  gravitated  towards  con- 
solidation in  the  first  half  century  of  the  Union,  its  course 
since  has  been  fearfully  accelerated.  The  modem  Republi- 
can in  his  interpretation  of  the  Constitution  takes  the  place 
of  the  early  Federalist  and  has  developed  his  theories.  The 
"  puissant  doctrine  "  of  the  implied  powers,  Mr.  Woodrow 
Wilson  contends,  has  made  Congress  omnipotent,  and  its 
power  over  the  States  is  to  be  extended  still  further; 
while  the  privileges  of  the  federal  courts  permit  them  to 
"annul  State  action,  but  State  courts  cannot  arrest  the 
growth  of  congressional  power."  *     Elsewhere,  in  writing 

*  "  Federal  Criminal  Procedure  and  the  Fee  System,"  The  Nation,  July  aa, 
1886. 

•  "Jefferson's  Works,"  H.  A.  Washington,  vol.  vii.,  p.  134. 
■  Garland's  "  Life  of  John  Randolph,"  vol.  ii.,  p.  145. 

^  "Congressional  Government,"  Boston,  1885,  p.  24. 


292     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

of  the  relations  of  the  federal  judiciary  to  the  States  of  the 
Union  he  takes  occasion  to  notice  the  illegality  of  the  three 
last  amendments  to  the  Constitution : 

''  The  integrity  of  the  powers  of  the  States  has  depended  solely 
upon  the  conservatism,  the  conservative  legal  conscience,  of  the 
federal  courts.  State  functions  have  certainly  not  decayed ; 
but  the  prerogatives  of  the  States  have  been  preserved,  not  by 
their  own  forces  of  self-defense,  but  by  the  national  government's 
grace  of  self-restraint." 

It  is  admitted  that  this  royal  grace  of  self-restraint  was 
not  always  maintained  by  the  federal  courts: 

''  The  actual  encroachments  which  the  latter  have  permitted 
themselves  .  .  .  were  not  needed  to  prove  the  potential  suprem- 
acy of  the  federal  ^government.  They  showed  how  that  potential 
supremacy  would  on  occasion  become  actual  supremacy ;  but 
they  added  nothing  but  illustration  to  the  principle  that  there  is 
no  guarantee  but  that  of  conscience  that  justice  will  be  vouch- 
safed a  suitor  when  his  adversary  is  both  court  and  opposing 
litigant." 

As  an  instance  of  the  "  strong  instinct  to  keep  within  the 
sanction  of  the  law,"  that  inspires  the  federal  conscience, 
there  is  adduced  the  case  of  the  amendments.  When  these 
"were  being  forced  upon  the  Southern  States  by  means 
which  were  revolutionary,  the  outward  forms  of  the  Consti- 
tution were  observed.  But  it  was  none  the  kss.  manifest 
with  what  sovereign  impunity  the  national  government 
might  act  in  stripping  those  forms  of  their  genuineness." ' 
Another  political  writer,  in  discussing  the  changes  in  the 
federal  government  since  1789,  finds  this  alteration  most 
marked  in  the  department  of  the  judiciary.  He  says  of  the 
courts  that  they  "  have  increased  steadily  in  power  and 
independence,  so  far  as  their  relations  to  the  two  co-ordi- 
nate branches  of  government  are  concerned.  The  change, 
silent,  steady,  has  certainly  transformed  the  governments 

»  The  Atlantic  Monthly,  April.  1886,  article  by  Woodrow  Wilson. 


MADISON'S  FOLLY,   MASON'S  WISDOM.  293 

within  themselves,  and  to  the  Federal  Union  it  has  furnished 
the  main  bulwark  of  its  power.'*  * 

The  biographer  of  John  Randolph  wrote  in  1850,  of 
George  Mason,  calling  him  "  the  champion  of  the  States 
and  the  author  of  the  doctrine  of  State  Rights."  "  Many 
of  the  prophecies  of  this  profound  statesman,"  he  adds, 
"  are  recorded  in  the  fulfilments  of  history — many  of  the 
ill-forebodings  of  the  inspired  orator  [Patrick  Henry]  are 
daily  shaping  themselves  into  sad  realities."  *  Eleven  years 
later  and  Southern  discontent  had  culminated  in  the  sad 
reality  of  war.  "The  predictions  of  George  Mason  and 
others,"  writes  Professor  Bledsoe,  **  in  which  they  foretold 
the  wrongs  and  aggressions  of  the  Northern  States,  if  armed 
with  the  formidable  powers  of  the  new  government,  Mr. 
Madison  just  set  aside  as  unfounded  and  uncharitable  suspi- 
cions. Now  in  regard  to  this  point  we  need  not  ask  who 
was  the  wiser  of  the  two,  George  Mason  or  James  Madison, 
nor  need  we  try  the  question  by  any  imperfect  notions  of 
our  own.  For  time  has  pronounced  its  irreversible  verdict 
in  favor  of  the  wisdom  of  George  Mason." '  It  was  per- 
ceived very  clearly  by  Madison  as  well  as  Mason  that  the 
Constitution  was  to  be  a  compact  between  two  sections  with 
wholly  different  interests  and  different  social  institutions.. 
And  it  was  with  the  understanding  that  the  Southern  States 
were  to  be  secured  in  all  their  rights  that  the  Union  of  1789 
was  formed.  How  these  rights  were  violated,  notably  in^ 
questions  affecting  the  institution  of  slavery,  is  matter  of| 
history.  A  systematic  endeavor  to  repress  the  expansion  of 
the  South  into  new  States  was  one  feature  of  this  injustice. 
And  before  the  generation  that  formed  the  new  government 
had  passed  away,  the  cloud  was  seen  in  the  horizon,  no 
larger  than  a  man's  hand,  out  of  which  in  after  years  was  to 
burst  the  storm  of  civil  war.    There  were  two  Federalists, 

*  "American  Constitutions/*  by  Horace  Davis,  Johns  Hopkins  University 
Studies,  Third  Series. 

•  Garland's  "  Life  of  John  Randolph,"  vol.  i.,  p.  367. 
»  •  *  Is  Davis  a  Traitor  ?  "  p.  169. 


294      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

members  of  the  Convention  of  1788,  who  lived  to  see  and 
deplore  the  tendency  of  the  government  which  they  had 
urged  upon  Virginia.  Madison,  in  his  later  public  acts,  in  a 
measure  retrieved  the  errors  of  his  earlier  manhood.  And 
Francis  Corbin  acknowledged  with  grief  to  John  Randolph 
in  1 81 8  his  conviction  that  the  "  centripetal  force  of  this  con- 
federacy is  greater  than  the  centrifugal.*'  He  saw  "  that 
men  of  a  certain  description  are  resolved  at  all  hazards  and 
by  all  means,  to  break  down  the  State  sovereignties,  our  only 
barrier  against  Federal  tyranny,  and  to  erect  on  their  ruins  a 
uniform  system  of  consolidated  despotism.**  *  Jefferson 
wrote  in  1820:  "The  coincidence  of  a  marked  principle, 
moral  and  political,  with  a  geographical  line,  once  con- 
ceived, would  never  be  obliterated  from  the  mind  ;  that 
it  would  be  recurring  on  every  occasion  and  renewing  irrita- 
tions, until  it  would  kindle  such  mutual  and  mortal  hatred, 
as  to  render  separation  preferable  to  eternal  discord.*** 
Again  he  says  of  the  policy  of  the  Abolitionists:  "All 
know  that  permitting  the  slaves  of  the  South  to  spread 
into  the  West  will  not  add  one  being  to  that  unfortunate 
condition,  that  it  will  increase  the  happiness  of  those  exist- 
ing, and  by  spreading  them  over  a  larger  surface,  will  dilute 
the  evil  everywhere,  and  facilitate  the  means  of  getting  rid 
of  it.*'  ■  There  is  something  most  pathetic  in  the  words  of 
this  patriot  of  '76,  as  with  mournful  prevision  he  looks  for- 
ward to  the  inevitable  issue  : 

"  What  does  the  Holy  Alliance  in  and  out  of  Congress  mean 
to  do  with  us  on  the  Missouri  question  ?  .  .  .  Are  we  then  to 
see  again  Athenian  and  Lacedemonian  Confederacies  ? — to  urge 
another  Peloponnesian  war  to  settle  the  ascendancy  between 
them  ?  Or  is  this  the  tocsin  of  merely  a  servile  war  ?  That 
remains  to  be  seen  ;  but  not  I  hope  by  you  or  me.  Surely  they 
will  parley  awhile  and  give  us  time  to  get  out  of  the  way."  * 

'  In  memoriam  of  Benjamin  Ogle  Tayloe,  Washington,  1872. 

•  '•  Jefferson's  Works,"  H.  A.  Washington,  vol.  vii.,  p.  158. 

•  IHJ.,  p.  194. 
^  Ibid,,  p.  200. 


STATE  SOVEREIGNTY  AND  SECESSION.  295 

On  the  question  of  the  ultimate  course  to  be  pursued,  Jeffer- 
son's  voice  gives  no  uncertain  sound.  And  we  cannot  doubt 
that  George  Mason  would  have  been  equally  explicit.  After 
anticipating  the  "longer  and  greater  sufferings"  which 
would  justify  secession,  he  adds  :  "  We  must  have  patience 
.  .  .  and  separate  from  our  companions  only  when  the  sole 
alternatives  left  are  the  dissolution  of  our  union  with  them, 
or  submission  to  a  government  without  limitation  of  powers. 
Between  these  two  evils,  when  we  must  make  a  choice,  there 
can  be  no  hesitation."  *  So  John  Randolph  in  18 14,  when 
New  England  had  serious  thoughts  of  putting  in  practice 
the  principle  of  secession,  wrote  of  the  possible  "  Southern 
Confederacy  "  that  would  remain,  and  while  deprecating  such 
an  issue  in  his  letter  to  the  inhabitants  of  the  Eastern  States, 
he  maintained  that  if  there  was  hostility  between  the  States 
of  the  Union  they  should  separate  :  "  For  with  every  other 
man  of  common  sense,"  he  adds,  "  I  have  always  regarded 
union  as  the  means  of  liberty  and  safety  ;  in  other  words,  of 
happiness,  and  not  an  end  to  which  these  are  to  be  sacri- 
ficed." •  In  this  connection,  the  words  of  Hamilton  in  The 
Federalist  may  be  noted.  Replying  to  the  supposed  case  of 
a  combination  of  States  refusing  to  appoint  Senators,  he 
says,  "  it  is  not  from  a  general  and  permanent  combination 
of  the  States  that  we  can  have  anything  to  fear."  But 
granting  the  existence  of  such  a  combination  of  States,  it 
"  would  suppose  a  fixed  and  rooted  disaffection  in  the  great 
body  of  the  people,  which  will  either  never  exist  at  all,  or 
will  in  all  probability  proceed  from  an  inaptitude  of  the 
general  government  to  the  advancement  of  their  happiness, 
in  which  event  no  good  citizen  could  desire  its  continuance."  * 
The  principle  of  community  independence  and  sovereignty, 
proclaimed  first  by  George  Mason  in  the  Virginia  Bill  of 
Rights,  reiterated  by  Thomas  Jefferson  in  the  Declaration  of 
Independence,  asserted  in  the  Articles  of  Confederation,  and 

*  Ibid.,  p.  427. 

•  Garland's  "  Life  of  John  Randolph,"  vol.  ii.,  p.  51. 
»  The  Federalist,  No.  59. 


296     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON, 

acknowledged  by  Great  Britain  in  the  treaty  of  peace,  it 
remains  for  the  modem  exponents  of  the  American  political 
system  to  disavow.     One  of  them  gravely  writes  : 

"  There  is  no  power  granted  or  *  reserved  *  to  the  local  States 
or  its  people  which  may  not  be  taken  away  without  their  consent. 
They  possess  no  power  which  is  not  held  at  the  will  of  a  power 
higher  and  outside  of  themselves.  This  view  may  not  conform 
to  the  intent  of  the  framers  of  the  Constitution  or  to  later  opin- 
ion as  to  the  effect  of  their  work,  but  what  is  of  more  importance, 
it  conforms  to  actual  facts  as  they  exist.  We  have  now  reached 
a  point  where  we  can  afford  to  see  these  facts  as  they  are,  and  we 
shall  escape  much  confusion  of  thought  if  we  cease  to  talk  of 
Sovereign  States  and  a  divided  sovereignty.' 


II 1 


If  this  be  so,  then  have  we  realized  the  worst  fears  of  the 
Antifederalists.  But  if  such  was  not "  the  intent  of  the  framers 
of  the  Constitution,"  it  is  expedient  that  the  people  who  pro- 
fess to  live  still  under  the  institutions  of  1787-89,  should  see 
that  the  "  actual  facts  "  conform  to  the  theory  of  the  fathers. 
A  Democratic  Executive  has  sought  in  the  exercise  of  the  veto 
power  to  restrain  the  centralizing  legislation  of  Congress; 
and  recent  decisions  of  a  Republican  Supreme  Court  tend  in 
the  same  conservative  direction,  declaring  against  the  dan- 
gerous principle  that  the  Federal  Legislature  can  supersede 
that  of  the  States.*  The  doctrine  of  State  sovereignty  is 
indeed  the  anchor  to  which  we  should  cling  as  the  only  hope 
of  political  liberty.  To  quote  again  from  that  wise  Southern 
statesman  who  has  just  gone  from  us,  the  President  of  the 
Confederate  States : 

"  By  all  that  is  revered  in  the  memory  of  our  Revolutionary 
sires,  and  sacred  in  the  principles  they  established,  let  not  the 
children  of  the  United  States  be  taught  that  our  Federal  Govern- 
ment is  sovereign  ;  that  our  sires,  after  having  by  a  long  and 
bloody  war  Won  community  independence,  used  the  power,  not 

>  Letter  on  **  American  Sovereignty,"  E.  Burritt  Smith,  The  Nation,  Feb.  4, 
1886. 
'  Decision  of  Supreme  Court  on  Civil  Rights  Act,  1883,  etc.,  etc. 


COMMUNITY  INDEPENDENCE.  297 

for  the  end  sought,  but  to  transfer  their  allegiance,  and  by  oath 
or  otherwise  bind  their  posterity  to  be  the  subjects  of  another 
Govemnient,  from  which  they  could  only  free  themselves  by 
force  of  arms." ' 

The  early  Federalists  loved  to  compare  the  Union  to  a 
house  with  its  thirteen  compartments  and  its  one  roof  shel- 
tering all.  The  Antifederalists  might  have  suggested  that  a 
fit  motto  over  the  door  of  this  house  would  be  the  words 
which  Dante  saw  inscribed  over  the  entrance  to  the  Inferno : 

"  Lastiale  ogm  sperama,  voi  eh'  enirate." 
■  Letter  to  Jaektan  (Hiss.)  Ciarian,  Jane  10,  1885. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

THE   PHILOSOPHER   AND   SEER. 

1788-1790. 

y  Upon  the  adjournment  of  the  Convention  George  Mason 
returned  to  "  Gunston  Hall,"  and  the  following  letters  to  his 
son  in  France,  written  at  this  time,  contain  characteristic 
allusions  to  public  events : 

ViRciNM,  Fairfax  Couin'v, 
Gunston  Hall,  July  at,  178B. 
Dear  John  : 

I  have  been  so  ill  for  these  two  days  past  that  I  have  been 
unable  to  sit  up,  and  now  write  in  great  pain.  You  must  there- 
fore excuse  the  shortness  of  this  letter. 

I  enclose  you  the  two  or  three  last  days'  proceedings  of  the 
Virginia  Convention,  by  which  you  will  see  the  small  majority 
which  has  ratified  the  new  project  The  minority  are  as  respecta- 
ble for  their  weight  end  influence  as  their  number,  and  it  will 
require  their  most  prudent  eiertion  to  keep  the  people  quiet  in 
some  parts  of  the  country.  .  .  .  The  debates  arc  not  yet 
published,  nor  is  there  any  cause  to  expect  that  they  will  be 
authentic.  The  short-hand  man  who  took  them  down  being  a 
Federal  partizan,  they  will  probably  be  garbled  in  some  such 
partial  manner  as  the  debates  in  the  Pennsylvania  Convention 
have  been  by  Lloyd. 

I  have  desired  Captain  Fenwick  to  send  you  some  patterns  of 
sundry  coarse  articles  which  being  in  great  annual  demand  in  all 
the  States  that  have  many  slaves,  if  they  could  be  made  in  France 
and  furnished  upon  equal  or  better  terms  than  in  Great  Britain, 
it  would  contribute  greatly  to  increase  the  commercial  intercourse 
»98 


LETTERS   TO  JOHN  MASON  IN  FRANCE.  299 

• 

between  the  two  countries  ;  and  would  be  an  inducement  to  the 
country  gentlemen  as  well  as  merchants  here  to  ship  tobacco  to 
France.  I  enclose  you  a  letter  to  Mr.  Je£ferson  upon  the  sub- 
jecty  left  open  for  your  perusal,  which  you  will  please  to  seal  and 
forward.  You  will  perceive  by  it,  that  I  have  some  expectation 
the  French  ministry  will  patronize  the  manufacturers  in  imitating 
these  articles  for  the  American  trade.  If  they  do,  and  the  hint 
originates  from  your  house,  it  may  prove  very  advantageous  to 
its  credit,  especially  if  the  attempt  succeeds.  You  will  there- 
fore, if  you  find  occasion,  confer  with  Mr.  Je£ferson  upon  the 
subject.  I  have  desired  Capt.  Fenwick  to  send  with  the  patterns, 
the  British  sterling  first  cost  of  each  article.  You  can  easily 
compute  and  accommodate  the  difference  between  the  English 
and  French  measure  &c.  The  fault  of  all  the  coarse  French 
woolens  I  have  seen  is  their  being  stiffened  and  battered  up  with 
paste  or  glue.  The  nearer  the  coarse  woolens  which  our  negroes 
have  been  accustomed  to  are  imitated  the  better  ;  and  particular 
attention  should  be  paid  to  the  width,  which  should  be  full  three 
fourths  of  an  English  yard. 

The  hoes  and  irons  should  be  made  of  good  iron,  the  blades 
of  the  hoes  hardened,  and  the  axes  well  steeled  and  tempered. 
The  workmen  should  be  informed  that  tar  is  not  put  over  the 
hoes  and  axes  to  conceal  cracks  or  flaws,  but  to  preserve  them 
from  rusting.  I  am  not  able  to  sit  up  lon'ger  at  present,  than  to 
wish  you  health,  and  success  in  your  business,  and  to  desire  you 
will  let  me  hear  from  you,  as  often,  and  as  particularly  as  you  can. 

I  am,  dear  John, 

Your  affectionate  father, 

G.  Mason.  / 

Virginia,  Gunston  Hall, 
September  2,  1788. 

Dear  John  : 

This  will  be  delivered  you  by  Capt.  Gregory,  commander  and 
owner  of  the  ship  Commerce^  who  brings  a  load  of  tobacco  for  the 
Farmers  General  to  Bordeaux  ;  and  was  so  obliging  to  call 
upon  me,  a  day  or  two  ago,  to  know  if  I  had  any  commands  to 
the  port  to  which  he  was  going,  and  to  assure  me  they  should  be 
delivered  with  his  own  hands. 


3CX)     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCK  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

Notwithstanding  Col.  Fitzgerald's  brig  was  delayed  so  long,  by 
his  negligence,  I  was  prevented  writing  by  her,  when  she  sailed, 
by  her  going  down  the  river,  without  my  knowing  it.  I  had 
wrote  you  by  her,  about  a  month  before,  at  the  time  she  was 
expected  to  have  sailed,  which  letter,  I  hope  has  come  safe  to 
hand,  but  am  afraid  the  bag  of  hominy  I  sent  you  by  her  had 
been  so  long  on  board,  that  it  will  be  moulded  or  damaged.  At 
the  time  I  wrote  you  by  the  said  brig  I  was  extremely  ill  with  the 
convulsive  cholic  complicated,  I  believe,  with  the  gout  in  my 
stomach  ;  which  continued  with  little  or  no  intermission  three 
days  and  nights,  and  left  me  in  so  debilitated  a  state,  that  I  was 
not  able  to  go  out  of  the  house  for  four  or  five  weeks  ;  and  it  is 
not  until  within  these  few  days  that  I  have  begun  to  recruit. 

I  enclose  you  a  letter  for  Mr.  Jefferson,  respecting  the  French 
endeavoring  to  supply  us  (from  patterns  sent)  with  some 
particular  articles  of  coarse  manufacture,  which  hitherto  have 
been  imported  only  from  Great  Britain.  It  is  a  subject  of  much 
greater  importance  than  you  may  at  first  conceive,  and  I  think  I 
should  not  exaggerate,  in  saying  that  the  annual  demand  for  them 
in  the  five  Southern  States,  is  not  less  than  10,000,000  of  Livres. 
Judge  then  what  effect  the  French  being  able  to  supply  us  with 
these  articles  upon  equal  or  better  terms  than  Great  Britain, 
would  have  upon  the  commercial  intercourse  between  the  two 
countries,  and  the  shipment  of  American  produce  to  France.  I 
desired  Capt.  Fen  wick  to  send  you  the  patterns  by  the  brig,  but 
forgot  to  ask  him  about  them  when  he  was  here  last.  He  is  now 
down  the  country,  endeavoring  to  collect  tobacco  for  a  small  brig 
of  Messrs.  Forrest  and  Stoddert,  which  he  has  chartered,  and  is 
now  loading  at  Georgetown,  so  that  he  will  not  probably  have  an 
opportunity  of  writing  by  Capt.  Gregory. 

A  violent  storm  of  wind  and  rain,  which  we  had  about  the  20th 
of  August,  with  the  almost  continual  rains  for  many  days  after- 
wards, has  done  great  damage  to  the  tobacco,  and  I  think  will 
shorten  the  crops  much,  as  well  as  injure  the  quality  of  the  whole, 
which  I  believe  will  in  general  be  unusually  bad  this  year.  I 
think  your  brothers  and  myself  have  lost  between  thirty  and  forty 
hogsheads  of  tobacco  in  our  own  crops ;  our  wheat  has  also  suf- 
fered some  damage,  and  our  hay  a  great  deal.  The  Indian  com 
appeared  at  first  to  be  greatly  injured,  but  has  recovered  more 


AMERICAN  PRODUCE  AND  FRENCH  MANUFACTURES.      30I 

than  could  have  been  expected,  so  that  the  crops  of  com  will  be 
pretty  good.  The  shortness  of  the  crop  of  tobacco  will  con- 
siderably afifect  the  interest  of  your  house ;  if  the  crop  of  tobacco 
had  been  as  good  as  it  promised  about  the  first  of  August,  your 
consignments  next  summer  would  have  been  very  considerable. 
I  have  written  to  my  friends  in  the  Eastern  and  Southern  States 
in  favor  of  your  house,  which  I  hope  will  have  a  good  efifect 

I  did  not  apply  (as  you  desired)  to  Mr.  Alexander;  my 
acquaintance  with  him  was  hardly  sufficient  to  warrant  such  a 
request ;  and  his  character  in  France  (as  I  have  heard)  being 
doubtful,  I  did  not  think  letters  from  him  would  operate  to  your 
advantage.  My  late  illness  has  hitherto  prevented  my  writing  to 
Doctor  Franklin ;  but  I  will  do  it  soon,  though  I  doubt  whether 
letters  from  him  will  be  of  much  service  to  your  house,  as  his  in- 
timacies were  more  among  the  literati  than  the  mercantile  part  of 
the  nation.  I  sent  you  in  my  last  letter  lists  of  the  firms  of  most 
of  the  mercantile  houses  in  the  lower  parts  of  Virginia.  I  would 
recommend  it  to  you,  to  endeavor  to  cultivate  a  correspondence 
with  the  American  minister,  Mr.  Jefferson,  which  I  think  will  be 
serviceable  to  you,  and  give' credit  to  the  house.  I  hope  you  de- 
termine to  persevere  in  the  line  you  set  out,  of  giving  no  credits 
whatever  in  America  ;  and  I  wish  you  to  be  very  careful  and  par- 
ticular in  purchasing  the  goods  you  send  to  your  correspondents 
upon  the  best  terms,  it  being  a  matter  upon  which  your  consig^n- 
ments  will  in  great  measure  depend. 

Pray  write  to  me  often,  and  particularly,  respecting  your  situa- 
tion, your  success  and  prospects  in  business ;  what  health  you 
enjoy,  how  you  like  the  country  you  are  in  and  what  progress 
you  make  in  the  language,  or  anything  else  interesting  to  you, 
and  consequently  to  me. 

I  send  you  by  the  Brig  the  proceedings  of  the  Virginia  Conven- 
tion. I  have  not  yet  seen  a  publication  of  the  debates.  Notwith- 
standing there  was  in  the  New  York  Convention  a  majority  of  two  to 
one  against  the  new  Constitution  without  previous  amendments,  yet 
after  the  adoption  by  Virginia  they  thought  themselves  under  the 
necessity  of  adopting  also,  for  fear  of  being  left  out  of  the  Union, 
and  of  civil  commotions.  They  have  drawn  up  amendments 
nearly  similar  to  those  of  Virginia  and  recommended  them  unani- 


302      UFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

mously  in  the  strongest  manner,  and  they  have  written  a  circular 
to  all  the  other  States  soliciting  their  cooperation  in  obtaining 
the  amendments  by  application  to  the  new  Congress  at  their  first 
meeting  which  it  is  expected  will  be  in  March  in  New  York,  so 
there  is  still  hope  of  safe  and  proper  amendments.  The  North 
Carolina  Convention  has  rejected  the  new  Constitution  unless 
previous  amendments  are  made,  by  a  great  majority.  I  have  not 
yet  seen  their  amendments  but  am  informed  they  are  much  the 
same  as  those  recommended  by  Virginia.  Your  brothers  have 
sent  you  a  number  of  late  newspapers,  which  will  give  you  pretty 
full  information  of  the  present  state  of  American  politics. 

All  your  brothers  and  sisters  who  are  at  home,  have  written  to 
you  by  this  opportunity.  The  family  are  all  well,  and  desire  to 
be  kindly  remembered  to  you.  I  am  extremely  anxious  to  hear 
of  your  safe  arrival  and  am,  dear  John, 

Your  most  affectionate  father, 

G.  Mason. 

P.  S.     Your  friend  Mr.  Anthony  called  to  see  me,  and  spent 

an  evening  with  me  last  week  on  his  return  from  North  Carolina ; 

^^        ili**^  where  he  tells  me  he  has  been  near  three  months,  and  is  to  return 

^"^     VoV«  ^  thither  again  in  October.     If  I  am  not  mistaken  he  is  about  com- 

^^  mitting  matrimony  with  a  Miss  Hill,  daughter  of  Mr.  Whitmel 

Hill,  the  most  wealthy  man  in  the  State  of  North  Carolina. 

Virginia,  Gunston  Hall, 
December  i8,  1788. 

Dear  John  : 

Capt.  Fenwick's  letter  from  George  Town  last  week,  per  the 
post,  having  miscarried  (as  most  of  my  letters  via  Alexandria  do), 
I  knew  nothing  of  the  ship  Washington  being  so  near  sailing, 
until  I  was  informed,  this  evening  by  express  from  Capt.  F.  that 
the  ship  would  be  down  to-night,  or  early  to-morrow  morning,  so 
that  I  have  very  little  time  left  to  write  to  you  by  her.  I  have 
not  received  any  letter  from  you  since  your  arrival  at  Bordeaux, 
but  one  of  the  fifteenth  of  August  per  the  Coidteana^  Capt.  Lime- 
bourg,  via  Norfolk  ;  and  that  so  soon  after  your  arrival  that  you 
were  then  able  to  give  me  little  account  of  your  affairs  or  situa- 
tion, or  how  you  liked  the  place.  I  hope  to  be  particularly  in- 
formed in  your  next  letters. 


POLITICAL  DETAILS.  303 


1  wrote  you  by  Fitzgerald's  brig,  and  also  by  Capt.  Gregory 
who  was  so  obliging  as  to  call  on  me  on  purpose,  and  promised 
to  deliver  the  packet  with  his  own  hand.  By  one  of  these  oppor- 
tunities (I  now  forget  which),  I  sent  you  the  proceedings  of  the 
Virginia  Convention,  and  informed  you  of  the  then  state  of 
American  politics.  North  Carolina  has  rejected  the  new  govern- 
ment unless  previous  amendments,  almost  the  same  with  the  sub- 
sequent amendments  proposed  by  Virginia,  can  be  obtained. 
Rhode  Island  has  yet  done  nothing  decisive  on  the  subject.  New 
York  discouraged  by  the  adoption  in  Virginia,  with  a  majority  in 
their  Convention  of  two  to  one  against  the  new  form  of  govern- 
ment, received  it  upon  the  minority's  agreeing  to  recommend 
unanimously  amendments  similar  to  those  in  Virginia,  and  voting 
a  circular  letter  from  their  president  Governor  Clinton  to  invite 
the  concurrence  of  the  other  States  in  an  immediate  application 
to  the  new  Congress  for  calling  another  Federal  Convention  to 
consider  them.  The  other  States  have  all  adopted  ;  Connecticut, 
Jersey,  Pennsylvania,  Delaware  and  Maryland  without  recom- 
mending any  amendments ;  New  Hampshire,  Massachusetts, 
South  Carolina  and  I  think  Georgia,  with  recommendation  of 
amendments.  The  Virginia  Legislature  now  sitting  have  taken 
up  the  subject  upon  the  ground  of  the  New  York  circular  letter 
and  by  a  large  majority  have  voted  an  application  to  Congress 
for  immediately  calling  a  Federal  Convention  to  consider  the 
amendments  proposed  by  this  and  other  States.  Their  address 
to  Congress  for  this  purpose  is  a  very  firm,  and  in  my  opinion, 
proper  one.  They  have  also  wrote  a  circular  to  the  other  States 
desiring  their  concurrence.  .      Colonel  R.  H.  Lee  and 

Colonel  Grayson  are  appointed  members  of  the  Senate  for  this 
State.  Virginia  is  divided  into  ten  districts  as  nearly  equal  as 
circumstances  will  permit,  the  rule  of  computation  being  the 
number  of  militia  in  each  county,  each  district  to  choose  one 
representative  [who  has  been  a  resident  of  the  district  for  twelve 
months  last  past]  to  the  new  government,  and  it  is  thought  the 
elections  will  go  very  generally  in  favor  of  men  who  are  for  call- 
ing a  Federal  Convention  to  make  amendments.  Our  district 
consists  of  the  counties  of  Loudon,  Fairfax,  Prince  William, 
Fauquier,  Stafford,  and  King  George.  Several  candidates  are 
talked  of  by  the  other  party,  to  wit  Ludwell  Lee,  Dr.  Stuart,  Mr. 


304      UFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON, 

Fitzhugh  of  "  Chatham/'  Leven  Powell  and  Martin  Pickett ;  but 
they  will  hardly,  I  suppose,  be  foolish  enough  to  start  more  than 
one.  The  gentlemen  for  the  amendments  have  not  yet  fixed 
upon  a  candidate  and  I  doubt  we  shall  be  at  a  loss  for  one, 
several  who  have  been  applied  to  having  refused.  If  we  can  pre- 
vail upon  a  proper  person  to  offer  I  think  there  will  be  little 
doubt  of  his  succeeding.  Mr.  James  Monroe  of  Fredericksburg 
(late  member  of  Congress)  opposes  Mr.  Madison  in  the  Spottsyl- 
vania  and  Orange  district  and  it  is  thought  will  carry  his  election. 
Beverley  Randolph  is  chosen  Governor  of  Virginia  in  the  room 
of  young  A — Id. 

Several  of  our  late  Convention  acquaintance  are  appointed 
members  of  the  Federal  Senate  ;  John  Langdon,  Esq :  from  New 
Hampshire,  Caleb  Strong,  Esq:  from  Massachusetts,  Dr.  Johnson 
and  Oliver  Ellsworth,  Esq:  from  Connecticut,  Mr.  Paterson  from 
Jersey,  Robert  Morris  from  Pennsylvania,  George  Read  and 
Richard  Bassett,  Esqurs:  from  Delaware.  So  much  for  politics. 
For  domestic  occurrences  I  refer  you  to  your  sisters,  who  I  make 
no  doubt  will  give  you  a  satisfactory  detail. 

Your  partner  Mr.  Joseph  Fenwick  has  written  to  me  to  desire 
my  interest  in  getting  him  the  appointment  of  Consul  in  Bor- 
deaux. Upon  talking  with  your  brother  George  upon  the  sub- 
ject, I  find  he  had  recommended  the  same  thing  to  you,  before 
you  left  Virginia,  a  circumstance  I  was  not  before  apprised  of. 
But  as  Mr.  Fenwick  has  written  to  me  to  recommend  him,  before 
he  knew  of  your  previous  intention  (indeed  before  your  arrival 
in  Bordeaux)  your  brother  George  and  I  are  both  of  opinion  that 
it  will  be  proper  to  make  the  application  for  him,  in  preference  to 
you,  for  several  reasons  ;  first  because  he  is  an  older  man,  and 
consequently  has  more  experience ;  secondly  because  he  will 
probably  remain  longer  in  France  ;  and  above  all,  because  we 
would  avoid  giving  the  smallest  cause  for  any  jealousy  or  mis- 
understanding between  you.  You  may  therefore  assure  Mr. 
Fenwick  that  what  interest  I  may  have,  with  our  new  rulers,  shall 
be  most  cordially  exerted  in  his  favor,  as  soon  as  the  new  Con- 
gress meets  ;  though  I  have  no  reason  to  expect  my  interest  will 
have  much  weight  in  the  new  government,  having,  as  you  know, 
warmly  opposed  it,  in  its  present  shape,  both  in  the  Federal  Con- 
vention and  our  own.     In  my  opinion  a  letter  of  recommendation 


THE   CONSULSHIP  A  T  BORDEA  UX.  30$ 

from  our  Minister,  Mr.  JefTerson,  would  have  a  good  effect.  Pray 
excuse  me  particularly  to  Mr.  Fenwick,  for  not  writing  to  him  by 
this  opportunity.  The  ship's  sailing  so  suddenly  and  unex- 
pectedly has  not  left  me  time ;  and  I  could  have  said  little  to 
him  but  a  repetition  of  what  I  have  said,  and  shall  say,  to  you. 

The  debates  in  the  Virginia  Convention  are  published,  at  least 
one  volume  of  them.  As  soon  as  I  can  get  them  I  will  send  them 
to  you,  though  I  believe  they  will  be  hardly  worth  your  attention, 
being,  I  am  told,  very  partially  garbled  by  the  short-hand  writer 
who  took  them  down  and  published  them.  This  I  always  ex- 
pected, as  I  understood  the  man  was  a  federal  partisan  and  they, 
you  know  as  well  as  I  do,  stick  at  nothing.  He  had  the  audacity 
to  desire  the  sanction  of  Convention  authority  for  his  work,  even 
before  he  began  it,  and  got  a  member  to  make  a  motion  for  that 
purpose  on  the  first  day  of  the  Convention,  but  upon  the  im- 
propriety and  absurdity  of  it  being  properly  exposed  by  Mr. 
Henry  and  myself,  the  member  who  made  the  motion  (George 
Nicholas)  was  ashamed  of  it  and  withdrew  it.  So  that  they  come 
out  with  no  other  sanction  than  the  credit  of  the  publishers. 
Some  of  the  Federalists  (as  they  call  themselves)  revised  and 
corrected  their  speeches.  I  know  that  some  of  the  principal 
gentlemen  on  the  other  side  were  privately  applied  to  by  the 
short-hand  writer  to  do  the  same,  but  treated  the  proposal  with 
contempt. 

One  thing  with  respect  to  the  appointment  Mr.  Fenwick  de- 
sires, I  had  almost  forgot  to  mention  ;  I  fear  some  difficulties 
may  arise  from  it,  and  being  of  opinion  with  Mr.  Fenwick,  that  such 
an  appointment  would  be  advantageous  to  the  house,  I  wish  to 
have  it  in  my  power,  by  proper  information  on  the  subject  to  ob- 
viate them.  Hitherto,  I  believe,  there  has  been  only  one  Ameri- 
can consul-general  in  France  ;  unless  the  arrangement  is  altered, 
it  is  probable  Mr.  Barclay  will  be  continued  ;  it  may  be  necessary 
therefore  to  show,  that  a  particular  consul  will  be  requisite  at 
Bordeaux  or  in  its  neighborhood,  for  that  part  of  the  kingdom. 

I  am  told  there  are  a  great  many  young  Irishmen  in  Bordeaux  ; 
if  we  may  judge  of  them  by  the  samples  we  have  here,  they  are 
neither  safe  nor  respectable  companions.  I  trust  I  am  as  free  as 
most  men,  from  illiberal  national  prejudices  ;  but  yet  I  wish  you 
to  converse  with  them  with  caution,  and  to  avoid  as  far  as  good 

VOL.  II.— 90 


306     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

manners  will  permit,  all  intimacy  with  them.  Your  not  being  able 
to  speak  French  will  naturally  lead  you  into  company,  and  intima- 
cies with  those  whom  you  can  converse  with  easily  ;  this  you  must 
guard  against,  and  submit  to  a  little  inconvenience  to  avoid  greater 
evils ;  and  I  hope  you  will  soon  acquire  the  French  language. 

In  a  letter  Capt.  Fenwick  showed  me  from  his  brother,  I  ob- 
serve Mr.  Whitesides  of  London  makes  you  an  offer  of  a  credit 
of  ;^iooo  sterling  upon  his  house,  &c.  You  are  obliged  to  Mr. 
Whitesides  for  his  friendship  and  ought  to  return  him  thanks  for 
the  offer,  but  I  would,  by  no  means,  advise  you  to  accept  it ; — the 
custom  of  drawing  and  re-drawing  being  the  most  dangerous,  in 
my  opinion,  of  all  mercantile  expedients.  Put  yourselves  in  no 
man's  power;  an  accident,  or  a  sudden,  unexpected  call  for 
money,  you  could  not  pay,  might  ruin  you  in  a  moment ;  a  suffi- 
cient reason  surely  for  avoiding  accepting  credits,  further  than 
you  can  clearly  and  safely  see  your  way  through,  if  you  take  them 
at  all.  And  if  the  business  of  your  house  becomes  considerable 
(as  I  think  it  will)  your  neighboring  merchants  and  secret  rivals 
will  look  upon  you  with  a  jealous  eye,  and  seize  any  opportunity 
of  destroying  you.  The  older  I  grow,  the  more  experience  has 
convinced  me,  that  there  are  few  men  to  be  safely  confided  in — 
rarinantes  in  gurgite  vasto. 

Stick  to  your  first  principles  of  giving  no  credits  yourselves ; 
especially  in  America  where  large  credits  must  infallibly  ruin 
you,  and  small  ones  are  not  worth  the  charge  of  collecting.  By 
giving  extensive  credits  you  may,  indeed,  acquire  a  large  fortune 
upon  paper  ;  but  you  will  never  have  any  anywhere  else.  Dili- 
gence, frugality  and  integrity  will  infallibly  increase  your  busi- 
ness and  your  fortunes,  if  you  can  content  yourselves  with 
moderate  things  at  first.  You  will  rise,  perhaps,  by  slow  degrees, 
but  upon  a  solid  and  safe  foundation.  It  is  a  terrible  thing  for  a 
man  to  spend  the  prime  of  his  life  in  business,  to  no  other  pur- 
pose than  to  ruin  himself,  and  others  ;  and  yet  this  is  the  case 
vrith  the  greater  part  of  those  who  are  called  men  of  great  enter- 
prize — men  of  deep  speculation,  &c.  Your  business  (after  the 
house  comes  to  be  generally  known)  will  depend  entirely  upon 
the  prices  you  can  render  for  the  commodities  consigned  you, 
and  the  prices  of  the  articles  you  send  in  return — no  man  will 
long  continue  any  business,  unless  he  finds  gain  in  it. 


B  U SI  NESS  A  D  VICE.  307 


I  have  written  to  most  of  my  friends  in  the  different  States,  in- 
forming them  of  your  plan,  and  recommending  the  house.  From 
the  answers  I  have  received,  I  have  reason  to  think  you  will  meet 
with  encouragement,  both  from  the  eastward  and  southward  ; 
I  think  it  would  be  proper  for  you  to  write  to  the  gentlemen  of 
your  acquaintance  in  the  late  Federal  Convention,  and  in  Boston. 
I  have  spoken  also  to  a  great  many  of  my  friends  in  Virginia ; 
most  of  them  express  a  desire  of  giving  your  house  a  preference  ; 
but  vague  promises  of  that  sort  are  little  to  be  relied  on.  I  en- 
close you  a  list  of  some  of  those  I  would  advise  you  to  write  to. 

The  crop  of  tobacco  this  year  in  Virginia  is  a  common  one,  as 
to  quantity,  neither  very  great  nor  small — the  quality  bad,  and  I 
think  the  price  in  the  country  will  be  rather  low,  not  more  than 
18/  to  20/  Virginia  currency  per  hundred  upon  Potomac  and 
Rappahannock.  I  applied  to  some  of  my  Assembly  friends 
lately  recommending  the  shipping  to  your  house  a  quantity  of  the 
public  tobacco  received  for  taxes  ;  I  don't  yet  know  the  result ; 
I  am  sure  it  would  be  to  the  advantage  of  the  public,  but  I  fear 
our  finances  are  too  low,  and  the  public  too  needy,  to  adopt  such 
a  plan. 

When  I  saw  Capt.  Fen  wick  about  a  month  ago,  I  was  speaking 
to  him,  about  chartering  a  small  ship,  to  load  with  wheat,  upon 
consignment.  I  think  one  might  be  speedily  filled  up,  and  could 
put  a  considerable  quantity  on  board  her  myself ;  but  I  have  not 
heard  whether  he  has  determined  on  doing  it  or  not.  I  have  not 
yet  received  any  rents,  or  got  any  of  my  own  crops  prized,  and 
therefore  am  unable  to  send  you  any  tobacco  by  the  Washington^ 
but  shall  send  some  by  the  first  ship  which  loads  here  for  your 
house  in  the  spring. 

Pray  let  me  hear  from  you  often,  and  particularly,  and  believe 

me,  dear  John, 

Your  most  affectionate  father, 

G.  Mason. 

P.  S.  Your  brother  Thomson,  and  his  family,  have  just  moved 
from  Gunston  to  his  own  seat  of  HoUin  Hall.  Your  brother 
Thomas  is  at  the  Academy  in  Fredericksburg. 

John  Mason,  Esq.: 

Merchant  in  Bordeaux.' 


'  Mason  Papers* 


308      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

With  excellent  advice  to  his  son  on  the  conduct  of  his 
business,  and  wise  warnings  against  unseemly  companions, 
Colonel  Mason  mingles  in  these  letters  shrewd  suggestions 
of  a  public  nature.  He  wished  to  see  France,  the  recent 
ally  of  the  Americans  in  the  Revolution,  taking  the  place  of 
England  in  supplying  the  States  of  the  South  with  the 
coarse  woollen  fabrics  used  for  their  negroes.  And  he  has 
a  proposal  for  the  Assembly,  that  they  should  ship  some  of 
the  tobacco  received  for  taxes  to  Bordeaux,  consigned  to 
the  house  of  Mason  &  Fenwick,  a  measure  which  would 
be  advantageous  for  Virginia,  as  well  as  profitable  to  the 
firm.  The  political  excitement  of  the  Convention  struggle 
had  subsided  ;  its  unsettled  questions  lying  over  for  adjust- 
ment, it  was  hoped,  by  the  new  Congress.  We  get  echoes, 
however,  from  the  late  field  of  action  ;  an  account  of  the 
"  federal  partisan,"  the  unappreciated  Robertson,  and  his 
efforts  to  secure  corrected  copies  of  the  speeches  in  the  Con- 
vention. It  is  to  be  regretted  that  there  was  not  an  Anti- 
federalist  reporter  there  also,  to  whom  Mason  and  Henry 
could  have  given  their  confidence.  As  it  is,  posterity  is 
under  obligations  to  the  Federalist.  George  Mason's  allu- 
sion to  the  late  governor — "  young  A — Id  " — compressed  in 
two  words  all  the  scorn  felt  by  his  true  and  vehement  nature 
for  the  man  who,  as  Mason  believed,  had  betrayed  his 
country,  Virginia,  and  thrown  away  the  opportunity  of 
securing  her  dearest  interests. 

The  Virginia  Assembly  in  the  fall  of  this  year,  under  the 
leadership  of  Patrick  Henry,  passed  the  resolutions,  com- 
mended by  Colonel  Mason,  for  calling  a  second  Federal 
Convention.  This  was  urged  upon  Congress  and  upon  the 
seveleal  States.  And  Richard  Henry  Lee  and  William 
Grayson,  two  of  the  most  able  and  determined  advocates  of 
amendments,  were  elected  to  the  Senate,  and  were  pledged 
to  bring  forward  the  subject  on  the  meeting  of  Congress. 
Madison,  defeated  for  the  Senate,  was  elected  by  the  Feder- 
alists to  a  seat  in  the  House  of  Representatives.  The 
division    of   Virginia    into    Congressional    districts   at   this 


THE  FAIRFAX  COUNTY  COURT.  309 

session,  of  which  George  Mason  speaks,  has  been  instanced 
by  a  recent  writer,  upon  very  insufficient  grounds,  as  the 
earliest  example  of  gerrymandering.  The  charge  is  made 
that  the  districts  were  so  carved  out  as  to  promote  the  elec- 
tion  of  the  Antifederalists.*  Just  the  opposite  accusation 
was  made  at  the  time  by  the  Antifederalists,  it  seems. 
Theodoric  Bland,  whp  calls  the  Federalists  the  '*  Non- 
Emendo-Tories,"  in  a  letter  to  Richard  Henry  Lee,  tells  of 
"  their  manoeuvres  **  to  prevent  the  latter's  appointment  to 
the  Senate.  "  Much  pains,"  he  adds,  "  is  taken  to  lay  off 
the  districts  so  as  to  include  the  most  consequent  Non- 
Emendo-Tories,  but  I  expect  this  bill,  which  is  almost 
entirely  of  their  carving,  will  be  hushed  up  and  served  out 
to  the  public  in  a  more  delicate  form  than  it  at  present 
appears  in."  *  As  it  finally  passed,  George  Mason  thought 
it  a  proper  one,  and  he  opposed,  on  constitutional  grounds, 
as  will  be  seen  later,  a  projected  alteration  in  the  formation 
of  his  own  district.  The  Virginia  Legislature,  in  the  fall  of 
1788,  showed  their  appreciation  of  Colonel  Mason's  services 
to  the  Commonwealth  by  naming  a  county  after  him.  An 
act  passed  for  dividing  the  county  of  Bourbon  in  the  district 
of  Kentucky,  and  the  new  county  thus  formed  was  called 
Mason. 

At  the  January  court  of  Fairfax  County  in  this  winter  of 
1 788-1 789,  George  Mason,  as  the  presiding  justice,  used  his 
influence  in  upholding  one  of  the  great  principles  of  free 
government.     As  the  record  of  the  court  states  : 

"  On  a  motion  for  levying  tobacco  for  the  purpose  of  defraying 
the  expences  of  building  a  new  court-house  or  repairing  of  the 
present  one,  it  was  objected  that  the  court  had  no  legal  authority 
to  levy  any  money  or  tobacco  on  the  inhabitants  of  the  county 
for  any  purpose  whatever,  and  the  question  being  put  whether 
they  were  vested  with  that  power  or  not  George  Mason,  Charles 
Broadwater,  Martin  Cockburn,  Richard  Chichester  [and  eight 
others  whose  names  are  given]  were  of  opinion  that  the  power  of 

'  Tyler's  "  Life  of  Henry,"  p.  313,  American  Statesmen  Series. 
•  Lee  Papers,  Southern  Literary  Messenger^  January,  1859. 


310     LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  AfASON. 


levying  taxes  by  the  courts  was  destroyed  by  an  express  article 
in  the  bill  of  rights  of  this  commonwealth."  ' 

But  ten  of  the  justices,  including  Dr.  David  Stuart,  were 
of  the  contrary  opinion.  And  with  this  order  is  found  a 
request  of  the  public  officers  of  Fairfax  County  asking  the 
advice  of  the  council  and  the  opinion  of  the  attorney-general 
concerning  the  power  of  the  county  courts  in  levying  taxes. 
A  gentleman  who  was  living  in  Baltimore  in  1827,  wrote  an 
account  of  a  meeting  in  Alexandria,  at  which  he  had  been 
present  as  a  youth,  when  this  subject  was  discussed.  He 
recalled  the  fact  of  there  being  a  score  or  more  justices  on 
the  ground  and  a  large  crowd  of  gentlemen,  most  of  them 
eager  for  the  proposed  measure.  Just  before  the  meeting 
opened  it  was  announced  that  Colonel  Mason  was  coming  to 
oppose  the  project.  But  as  public  opinion  was  so  strongly 
in  its  favor,  and  there  were  known  to  be  so  many  good 
speakers  who  would  advocate  it,  an  easy  triumph  was  antici- 
pated. George  Mason  arrived,  and  when  the  question  had 
been  argued  at  length  by  its  friends,  he  rose  and  delivered 
such  a  powerful  and  convincing  argument  as  to  its  illegality, 
maintaining  that  only  the  representatives  of  the  people  could 
properly  levy  taxes,  and  the  justices  present  were  not  such 
representatives,  that  in  all  that  hitherto  confident  assembly 
there  was  not  one  dissenting  voice,  and  the  point  was  won. 
These  reminiscences,  though  they  may  possibly  exaggerate 
the  triumph  of  Colonel  Mason,  prove  at  least  that  it  was  owing 
to  him  that  the  court  decided  adversely  to  the  motion,  and 
the  impression  of  his  eloquence  must  have  been  very  vivid 
and  enduring  upon  his  youthful  hearer,  since  he  attributed 
to  it  such  signal  results.  It  may  be  presumed  that  the 
council  and  the  attorney-general  supported  Colonel  Mason's 
Interpretation  of  the  law.  And  an  act  of  the  Assembly 
passed  the  4th  of  December  of  this  year,  which  empowered 
the  justices  of  Fairfax  County  to  levy  a  sum  on  the  tith- 
able  persons  within  the  county  sufficient  for  the  new  court- 

*  **  Virginia  Calendar  Papers,"  vol.  iv.,  p.  553. 


LETTERS   TO  JAMES  FEN  WICK,  3II 

house  buildings  and  the  two  acres  of  ground  on  which  to 
place  them.' 

The  following  letters  to  Capt.  James  Fenwick,  brother  of 
John  Mason's  partner,  exhibit  Colonel  Mason  in  his  character 
of  a  busy  and  careful  planter  and  farmer,  shipping  his  tobacco 
and  wheat  to  merchants  in  Georgetown,  to  go  from  there  to 
France. 

GuNSTON  Hau.,  March  8th,  17S9. 
Dear  Sir  : 

I  am  sorry  I  am  disappointed  in  shipping  all  our  wheat  by  the 
ship  Maryland ;  but  it  was  impossible  to  help  it.  The  bad  weather 
which  delayed  Mr.  McCarty's  boat  so  long,  also  prevented  Mr. 
Linton's  vessel  from  getting  out  of  Quantico  Creek,  until  it  was  too 
late  to  send  up  any  more  wheat  for  this  ship  ;  but  I  shall  depend 
upon  getting  room  for  wheat  we  have  left,  in  the  Becfy^  and  as  I 
expect  she  will  be  quickly  despatched  it  may  probably  make  no 
great  difference  to  me,  and  I  beg  you  will  get  the  matter  so  fixed, 
that  I  may  not  be  again  disappointed.  The  bearer,  Mr.  McCarty's 
shipper,  brings  up  eight  or  nine  hogsheads  of  tobacco  for  my  son 
George.  You  will  be  pleased  to  let  me  know  by  a  line,  when  he 
returns,  at  what  time  the  ship  Becky  will  certainly  be  ready  to  take 
in  wheat,  and  I  will  begin  to  send  ours  up  immediately,  and  if  this 
cannot  be  yet  known,  as  soon  as  it  can  you  will  be  good  [enough] 
to  inform  me  by  a  letter  per  post,  directed  to  be  left  at  the  post- 
office  in  Colchester,  as  I  shall  be  anxious  to  get  our  wheat  up  in 
due  time.  My  people  went  down  again,  as  soon  as  the  river 
opened,  to  Chickamuxon,  to  inspect  my  tobacco  and  despatch 
Messrs.  F[orest]  and  S[toddert]*s  craft,  but  have  not  yet  re- 
turned. I  imagine  the  hard  frost  last  Wednesday  night  stopped 
up  the  mouth  of  Chickamuxon  Creek,  or  perhaps  the  low  tides 
have  kept  the  craft  aground.  She  will  surely  be  up  the  first 
good  day,  and  I  hope  will  bring  up  my  tobacco  in  time  for  the 
ship  Maryland, 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  your  most  obedient  servant, 

G.  Mason. 

Capt.  James  Fen  wick, 
George  Town. 

'  journal  of  the  Assembly,  1789. 


312      LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE  OP  GEORGE  MASON. 

GuNSTON  Hall,  March  27,  1789. 

Dear  Sir  : 

The  bearer,  John  Hill,  brings  up  550  bushels  of  wheat  by  our 
measure  which  is  all  we  have  now  ready  ;  this  will  fall  short  of  the 
quantity  I  owe  Messrs.  Forrest  and  Stoddert,  in  return  for  wheat 
they  were  so  kind  [as]  to  put  into  the  ship  Becky  upon  my  account. 
But  so  soon  as  I  know  the  loss  in  this  last  load,  by  the  measure- 
ment at  George  Town,  I  will  desire  Messrs.  Fenwick,  Mason,  and 
Company  to  place  to  the  credit  of  Messrs.  F.  and  S.  the  nett  pro- 
ceeds of  as  much  of  my  wheat  in  the  Beci^  as  I  am  deficient  in 
repaying  them,  which  I  presume  will  be  the  most  agreeable  method 
to  those  gentlemen  of  settling  it,  as  it  will  amount  to  the  same 
thing,  as  repaying  the  whole  now  at  Georgetown. 

I  will  thank  you  to  transmit  me  by  John  Hill,  when  he  returns, 
a  statement  of  all  our  wheat  in  both  ships,  according  to  their 
respective  manifests,  that  I  may  see  whether  it  corresponds  with 
the  statement  I  have  given  in  my  letters  to  F.,  M.,  &  Co.  Upon 
having  the  account  of  our  wheat  in  both  ships,  with  the  measure- 
ment at  George  Town  of  the  load  John  Hill  now  brings,  my  son 
William  and  I  can  easily  adjust  our  respective  quantities. 
I  am,  dear  sir,  your  most  obedient  servant, 

G.  Mason. 

In  case  of  Capt.  Fenwick's  absence,  Major  Stoddert  will  be 
pleased  to  open  this.* 

Colonel  Mason  wrote  to  his  son  in  this  same  month,  on 
the  subject  of  the  consulship  which  he  hoped  to  obtain  for 
Mr.  Joseph  Fenwick.  This  letter  is  of  special  interest,  in  its 
reference  to  Washington,  as  it  bears  testimony  to  the  early 
and  intimate  character  of  the  friendship  which  had  subsisted 
between  George  Mason  and  George  Washington — a  friend- 
ship which  the  former  feared  was  likely  to  be  interrupted  by 
political  differences.  Colonel  Mason's  visits  to  "  Mount 
Vernon,"  however,  had  not  ceased  in  1788.  On  the  2d  of 
November  of  that  year,  which  fell  on  Sunday,  he  dined  and 
spent  the  day  with  Washington."     But  in  the  struggle  over 

'  MS.  Letters.     Major  Stoddert,  Benjamin  Stoddert,  Secretary  of  the  Navy 
under  John  Adams. 

*  Washington's  Private  Journals,  Toner  Transcripts. 


MASON* S  FRIENDSHIP  FOR    WASHINGTON.  313 

the  new  Constitution,  the  old  friends  had  no  doubt  drifted 
apart.  George  Mason,  the  Revolution  over — in  which  he 
and  Washington  had  been  wholly  of  one  mind, — saw  now  in 
the  untried  future  new  dangers  springing  up  to  which  Wash- 
ington  was  blind.  Virginia  and  the  South  generally  had 
cause  later  to  know  him  for  the  wiser  man  of  the  two.  But 
at  this  time  he  was  in  the  party  of  the  minority.  And  he 
seems  to  have  felt  that  he  must  justify  himself  in  his  position 
of  withstanding  the  current  of  public  opinion.  His  con- 
science could  bear  witness,  as  he  says,  to  the  purity  of  his 
motives.  A  civil  war  bears  witness  now  to  the  sound 
"judgment"   which   guided   his   conscience. 

K"  Gunston  Hall,  March  13,  1789. 
"  Dear  John  :  > 

"...  I  nave  not  yet  made  an  application  on  behalf  of 
Mr.  Fenwick  for  the  appointment  of  consul,  as  the  President  of 
the  United  States  has  the  nomination  to  offices.  I  thought  there 
was  some  impropriety  and  indelicacy  in  making  application 
before  General  Washington  has  accepted  the  office  of  President, 
to  which  he  has  been  elected  by  the  unanimous  suffrage  of  the 
electors  in  all  the  ratifying  States.  You  may  assure  Mr.  Fenwick 
that  as  soon  as  this  ceremonial  is  adjusted  I  shall  not  fail  to 
exert  whatever  interest  I  have  in  his  favor.  You  know  the 
friendship  which  has  long  existed  (indeed  from  our  early  youth) 
between  General  Washington  and  myself.  I  believe  there  are 
few  men  in  whom  he  placed  greater  confidence  ;  but  it  is  possi- 
ble my  opposition  to  the  new  government,  both  as  a  member  of 
the  national  and  of  the  Virginia  Convention,  may  have  altered 
the  case.  In  this  important  trust,  I  am  truly  conscious  of  having 
acted  from  the  purest  motives  of  honesty,  and  love  to  my  coun- 
try, according  to  that  measure  of  judgment  which  God  has 
bestowed  on  me,  and  I  would  not  forfeit  the  approbation  of  my 
own  mind  for  the  approbation  of  any  man,  or  all  the  men  upon 
earth.  My  conduct  as  a  public  man,  through  the  whole  of  the 
late  glorious  Revolution,  has  been  such  as,  I  trust,  will  administer 
comfort  to  me  in  those  moments  when  I  shall  most  want  it,  and 
smooth  the  bed  of  death.  But  as  Shakespeare  says,  '  Something 
too  much  of  this.'  " 


314     ^^PJ^  ^ND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

m 

The  letter  closes  with  the  following  postscript : 

'*  Send  me  by  the  first  good  ship  to  Potomac  River  insured,  six 
half  hogsheads  viz.  :  about  one  hundred  and  eighty  or  ninety 
American  gallons  of  good  cogniac  brandy  in  barrels  or  casks  of 
about  thirty  gallons  each,  iron-bound  or  very  well  secured  and ' 
tight,  and  covered  each  with  a  double  empty  cask  to  prevent 
the  sailors  or  the  craftsmen  in  this  country  from  making  free 
with  it.  Also  a  piece  of  silk,  a  pattern  for  your  sister  Betsy.  I 
would  have  it  a  handsome  but  not  a  very  expensive  silk,  and 
depend  upon  your  taste  in  the  choice  of  it.  If  trimmings  are 
necessary  they  should  be  sent  with  it,  and  sewing  silk  to  make 
it  up." ' 

Colonel  Mason  wrote  from  "Gunston  Hall'*  to  Washing- 
ton ten  days  later  on  the  subject  of  a  coachman  living  with 
him,  whom  the  latter  wanted  to  secure.  He  had  been  in 
Colonel  Mason's  service,  and  Washington  wished  to  know 
his  character.  The  man,  a  German,  came  to  Maryland,  "  and 
entered  into  an  indenture  to  Colonel  Fitzhugh,"  George 
Mason's  relative,  "  who  thereupon  paid  his  passage  over  to 
serve  him  four  years."  After  living  two  years  in  Maryland 
with  Colonel  Fitzhugh,  the  latter  recommended  him  as  a 
coachman  to  Colonel  Mason,  and  he  was  founc}  to  be  a  good 
driver  and  careful  of  horses,  but  lazy  and  quarrelsome.  His 
indenture  expired  in  October,  1787,  but  he  had  wished  to 
remain  at  "Gunston,"  and  Colonel  Mason  gave  him  then 
;f  15  a  year  with  his  clothes.  He  only  kept  him,  however, 
he  tells  his  correspondent,  because  he  could  get  no  other 
coachman.  No  servant  of  his  own  was  capable  of  driving, 
and  this  man  had  never  attempted  to  teach  any  one  of  them ; 
only  a  small  negro  had  "  ridden  one  of  the  four  horses  as 
postillion."  The 'duties  of  the  German  were  to  serve  as 
coachman,  to  wait  at  table,  occasionally  work  in  the  garden, 
take  care  of  the  stable  and  horses,  and  keep  the  key  of  the 
com  house  and  give  out  the  corn.  But,  in  fact,  he  did  little 
more  than  drive  and  look  after  the  horses.'     Probably  this 

*  Mason  Papers.  *  Washington  MSS.,  Department  of  State. 


BETTER   TO  HIS  SON  JOHN.  315 

German  coachman  went  from  Colonel  Mason's  service  into 
that  of  the  new  President,  and  drove  for  him  the  famous 
cream-colored  chariot  painted  by  Cipriani.  This  letter  of 
March  23,  1789,  is  the  last  one  of  George  Mason's  letters  to 
Washington  which  has  been  preserved. 
The  following  letter  was  written  by  Colonel  Mason  to  his 

son  in  France : 

Virginia,  Gunston  Hall, 
May  14,  1789. 
Dear  John  : 

I  have  received  your  several  letters,  one  via  Norfolk  and  two 
by  the  brigs  Betsy  and  Nancy^  besides  the  former  ones,  the 
receipt  whereof  I  had  before  mentioned.  Your  brother  George 
has  received  a  letter  from  you  of  a  later  date,  via  Philadelphia, 
wherein  you  mention  your  intention  to  set  out  for  Paris  the 
next  morning.  ...  I  have  written  a  long  letter  by  this 
opportunity  to  Fen  wick,  Mason,  &  Company  upon  several  inter- 
esting particulars,  to  which  I  refer  you,  to  save  a  repetition  here. 
I  observe  what  you  mention,  with  respect  to  overshipping  goods 
to  some  particular  people  ;  perhaps  in  a  few  instances,  now  and 
then,  it  is  difficult  to  avoid  this,  but  you  should  avoid  it  as  much 
as  possible.  The  hazard  is  too  great  in  large  debts,  and  small 
debts  in  this  country  are  not  worth  a  shilling  in  the  pound  ;  and 
there  are  son;^e  people  who  would  otherwise  ship  you  tobacco, 
that  upon  getting  in  your  debt,  will  immediately  discontinue  their 
correspondence.  But  when  you  were  mentioning  with  regret 
your  having  overshipped  goods  to  a  small  amount,  I  am  surprised 
at  your  silence  with  respect  to  the  more  important  afifair  of  Mr. 
Whitesides.  This  has  the  appearance  of  its  having  been  done 
without  your  participation,  or  of  your  not  being  intimately 
acquainted  with  the  transactions  and  business  of  the  house, 
either  of  which  may  be  productive  of  bad  consequences.  You 
are  upon  the  spot,  ought  to  know,  and  haye  a  right  to  be  con- 
sulted in  all  important  transactions.  In  order  to  entitle  you 
with  the  greater  propriety  to  this,  you  should  spare  no  pains  or 
application  to  make  yourself  well  acquainted  with  business,  so 
as  to  be  able  to  take  a  proper  share  in  the  management,  as  well 
as  to  enable  you  to  conduct  the  business  of  a  separate  house 
yourself  whenever  it  becomes  necessary,  which  probably  may  be 


3f6     UFE  AMD  COMMMSFOXDEJfCB  OF  GEOMCE  MA  SOX. 


soon,  yocwjrtwygndfng  I  aadeiitaad  joa  aie  fikdj  to 
jOttfseHres^  tliis  ailair  gn^s  me  much  mcasaMSiy  for  tkoa^  I 
fcare  alwajrs  bcaid  a  tcij  good  cKaiactcr  o€  Mr.  Fcavi^  aad 
tiiat  he  is  a  diHgrnf,  attcntiyCy  dbcicct  jonng  aiaii,  jcc  tkis 
traiisactioii  shows  a  kmd  o€  softness  and  milkiiirw  o€  tespcr 
liable  to  imposiaoD,  vbicfa  both  joa  and  he  oa^bi  to  goaid 
agaiBst.  Pnij  eiplain  this  basiness  of  Mr.  Whitcsides^  and  kt 
ne  know  without  rcserre  how  it  is  like  to  terminate.  ...  I 
beliere  joor  Cooreotion  arqnaintance.  Doctor  McChirg  o€  Rich- 
mood,  has  shipped  yoo  eight  or  tea  hogsheads  o€  tobacco  per 
the  Wasking0m,  I  would  have  700  write  him  particnlarlj  by 
the  first  coDTenient  opportonitj  informing  him  of  the  prices 
current,  and  what  articles  can  be  adrantagcotisl j  imported  from 
Bordeanx.  It  may  be  a  means  of  opening  yon  a  correspondence 
from  James  Rrrer,  as  Dr.  McClnrg  is  a  member  of  oor  Execntrre 
Council  and  a  man  of  some  interest  in  that  part  of  the  country. 
But  you  should  alwajrs  take  care  to  be  accurate  in  your  quota- 
tions of  the  prices  current  at  the  time.  This  was  not  the  case  in 
the  list  of  the  current  prices  transmitted  in  your  letters  of  De- 
cember and  January,  wherein  you  quoted  tobacco  from  30  lb  to 
33  lb  per  ct.  instead  of  28  Ib.-io. 

You  are  under  obligations  to  Mr.  Daniel  Brent,  of  ^  Richland," 
and  his  brother,  Mr.  Richard  Brent,'  for  their  utmost  endeavors 
to  promote  your  interest  here,  and  I  believe  to  very  good  eflFect. 
Your  Stafford  friends  have  not  shipped  you  so  generally  as  I 
expected.  One  reason  for  this  is  that  great  part  of  their  tobacco 
upon  low  grounds  was  destroyed  by  the  excessive  rains  last  sum- 
mer, and  Another  that  I  believe  many  of  them  are  indebted  to 
the  Scotch  stores,  and  there  is  hardly  a  Scotch  merchant  in  this 
part  of  the  country  who  does  not  wish  your  house  at  the  devil.  \( 

I  hope  to  hear  soon  that  you  and  Mr.  Fenwick  have  got  to 
housekeeping,  for  as  your  business  is  now  grown  considerable, 
and  there  are  of  course  many  captains  of  ships  and  others  to 
whom  it  will  be  necessary  for  you  to  show  civilities,  I  can't  think 
housekeeping  will  be  any  great  addition  to  your  expences,  and  I 
am  sure  it  will  give  some  respectability  to  your  house,  besides 
that  it  will  be  much  more  agreeable  than  living  in  a  boarding- 

'  These  were  sons  of  William  Brent  of  '*  Richland,"  whose  wife  was  a  sister 
of  Mrs.  Robert  Brent  of  **  Woodstock." 


SHIPMENTS  OF   WHEAT  AND   TOBACCO.  317 

house.  I  still  continue  of  opinion  that  it  will  be  very  imprudent 
in  you  to  come  to  America  this  year,  but  that  it  will  be  very 
proper  the  year  after.  Indeed,  the  more  I  have  reflected  on  this 
subject  the  more  I  am  confirmed  in  this  opinion. 

I  mentioned  to  you  in  my  letter  by  the  Becky  that  it  was  not 
then  in  my  power  to  ascertain  the  respective  quantities  of  wheat 
shipped  by  me  and  your  brothers  Thomson  and  William.  I  now 
send  you,  on  the  other  side,  an  exact  statement  of  all  the  wheat 
we  shipped  you  in  the  two  ships,  the  Maryland  and  the  Becky^ 
according  to  which,  separate  accounts  of  sales  are  to  be  rendered 
us,  notwithstanding  the  bills  of  lading  for  the  whole  may  have 
been  taken  in  my  name,  as  I  would  avoid  blending  your  brothers 
accounts  with  mine.  You  will  observe  that  sixty-seven  bushels 
of  the  wheat  included  in  your  brother  William's  quantity  properly 
belongs  to  William  Green,  who,  being  very  desirous  to  ship  you 
something,  got  your  brother  William  to  include  it  with  his,  as 
the  ship  did  not  take  in  any  wheat  but  from  our  family,  except 
Forrest  and  Stoddert's  own.  For  this  sixty-seven  bushels  your 
brother  William  desires  a  separate  account  of  sales  may  be 
rendered  to  Green,  and  an  account  rendered  to  himself  for  only 
his  own  proper  wheat.  It  will  also  please  Green  mightily,  which 
is  some  consideration,  as  the  man  seems  to  be  much  attached  to 
you,  and  I  believe  intends  to  ship  you  his  tobacco  also.  You 
will  observe  too  that  Messrs.  Forrest  and  Stoddert  are  to  have 
credit  by  me  for  the  nett  proceeds  of  fifty-four  bushels  of  my 
wheat  in  the  Becky^  and  my  account  debited  accordingly,  it 
being  the  quantity  I  still  owe  these  gentlemen  for  what  they  were 
so  kind  to  lend  me.  On  the  other  side  is  also  a  duplicate  of  the 
list  of  goods  I  ordered  in  my  letter  per  the  Becky,  I  wish  the 
brandy  may  arrive  before  the  new  duties  take  place,  and  I  hope 
it  will  be  of  better  quality  than  the  brandy  sent  me  last  year  by 
Mr.  Fenwick,  which,  though  at  a  very  high  price,  is  exceeding 
bad ;  the  man  who  furnished  it  must  have  been  a  knave,  for  I 
make  no  doubt  Mr.  Fenwick  expected  it  was  good  and  paid  a 
price  accordingly.  The  piece  of  silk  ordered  is  for  your  sister 
Betsy,  and  I  expect  you  will  choose  it  yourself. 

I  enclose  you  a  list  of  the  members  of  the  new  Congress,  in 
both  Houses,  by  which  you  will  see  that  a  considerable  number 
of  the  Senate  are  our  Convention  acquaintance. 


31 8     UFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OP  GEORGE  MASON. 

I  send  you  by  Capt.  Bond  a  barrel  containing  eight  hams.  I 
wish  they  may  arrive  in  good  order,  as  I  think  they  were  exceed- 
ing good  hams  when  they  were  packed  up.  I  should  be  glad  to 
know  whether  the  barrel  of  hominy  and  smoked  beef,  by  Capt 
Rose  got  to  hand  in  good  order.  Your  brothers  sent  you  by 
Capt.  Rose  two  female  and  one  male  oppossum. 

•  •.•■•..• 

We  have  had  a  mocking  bird  for  you  ever  since  last  summer 

which  is  quite  tame  and  domestic,  and  intended  to  send  it  out 

this  spring,  but  it  proves  a  female,  and  they  seldom  sing ;  this 

hardly  attempts  a  single  note,  and  therefore  we  shall  not  send  it 

abroad,  to  disgrace  its  native  country.    I  would  turn  it  out  of  the 

cage,  but  I  am  afraid  its  liberty,  after  such  long  confinement, 

would  only  make  the  poor  thing  a  prey  to  the  first  hawk  that 

came  in  its  way.  We  will  endeavor  to  raise  some  young  ones  this 

summer.     I  will  also  endeavor  to  raise  a  buck  and  doe  fawn  for 

you  this  summer.     .     .     .     The  family  at  Gunston  is  reduced 

lately  from  a  very  large  to  a  small  one,  consisting  now  only  of 

your  sister  Betsy,  your  brother  William,  Mrs.  Mason  and  myself. 

I  most  cordially  wish  you  health  and  happiness,  and  am,  dear 

John, 

Your  affectionate  father, 

G.  Mason. 
Mr.  John  Mason, 

Merchant  in  Bordeaux, 

per  the  Washington^  Capt.  Bond.' 

The  new  Federal  Government  went  into  operation  March 
4,  1789,  and  Congress  met  in  New  York.  Richard  Henry 
Lee  brought  forward  the  Virginia  amendments,  and  William 
Grayson  wrote  to  Patrick  Henry  on  this  subject  on  the  29th 
of  September : 

"  With  respect  to  amendments,  matters  have  turned  out  ex- 
actly as  I  apprehended,  from  the  extraordinary  doctrine  of  play- 
ing the  after  game  ;  the  lower  House  sent  up  amendments  which 

'  Mason  Papers.     There  were  1000  bushels  of  wheat  shipped  by  George 
Mason  and  his  sons  in  the  ship  Maryland^  and  1298^  bushels  in  the  Becky. 


STEVENS  THOMSON  MASON.  319 

held  out  a  safeguard  to  personal  liberty  in  a  great  many  instances, 
but  this  disgusted  the  Senate,  and  though  we  made  every  exertion 
to  save  them,  they  are  so  mutilated  and  gutted,  that  in  fact  they 
are  good  for  nothing.  .  .  .  The  Virginia  amendments  were 
all  brought  into  view  and  regularly  rejected.  .  .  .  Their  maxim 
seems  to  have  been  to  make  up  by  construction,  what  the  Consti- 
tution wants  in  energy." 

Ten  amendments,  however,  proposed  at  this  time  were  made 
a  part  of  the  Constitution  in  1791.  They  were  in  substance 
equivalent  to  some  of  those  on  the  Virginia  list.  The  tenth 
amendment,  which  was  endorsed  by  the  Conventions  of  Vir- 
ginia,  Massachusetts,  Pennsylvania,  and  North  Carolina,  as 
moved  in  the  Senate  by  Richard  Henry  Lee,  was  in  these 
words  :  "  The  powers  not  delegated  by  the  Constitution  to 
the  United  States,  nor  prohibited  by  it  to  the  States,  are 
reserved  to  the  States  respectively.**  Ellsworth,  of  Massa- 
chusetts, moved  to  add,  "  or  to  the  people,*'  a  phrase  which 
was  perverted  from  its  plain  signification,  "  or  to  the  people 
of  the  States/'  and  used  in  later  years  as  an  argument  against 
States-rights  and  the  doctrine  of  secession. 

George  Mason  from  his  retirement  at  "Gunston  Hall" 
must  have  watched  with  great  interest  the  course  of  events 
in  Congress,  and  the  action  of  the  Virginia  Legislature  upon 
these  amendments.  Stevens  Thomson  Mason  was  in  the 
Virginia  Senate,  and  doubtless  in  correspondence  with  his 
uncle,  by  whose  side  he  had  sat  in  the  Virginia  Convention 
and  whose  principles  he  had  made  thoroughly  his  own. 
With  his  father  no  longer  living,  and  his  uncle's  political 
career  closed,  Stevens  Thomson  Mason  represented  the 
name  in  public  life  at  this  time,  and  upon  him,  in  some  sort, 
the  mantle  of  his  elders  had  fallen.  The  journal  of  the  Virginia 
Senate  records  that  the  House,  on  the  8th  of  December, 
went  into  committee  of  the  whole  on  the  resolutions  of  the 
House  of  Delegates  ratifying  the  amendments  (twelve  in 
number)  proposed  by  Congress  to  the  Constitution  of  the 

'  '•  Letters  and  Times  of  the  Tylers,"  Lyon  G.  Tyler,  vol.  i.,  p.  165. 


320     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

United  States.  They  came  to  the  following  resolution  : 
That  the  third,  eighth,  eleventh,  and  twelfth  amendments 
be  postponed  until  the  next  session  of  Assembly.  The 
others  were  agreed  to,  and  then  the  motion  was  made,  that 
all  or  any  members  who  voted  for  the  postponement  of  the 
above  four  articles  be  allowed  to  enter  upon  the  journal  the 
reasons  which  influenced  their  vote  and  all  or  any  of  their 
objections.  On  the  12th  of  December  this  was  accordingly 
done,  and  the  entry  is  as  follows : 

'^  The  Senate  of  Virginia  having  determined  to  postpone  until 
the  next  session  of  Assembly,  the  third,  eighth,  eleventh,  and 
twelfth  articles  of  the  amendments  to  the  Constitution  of  the 
United  States,  recommended  by  Congress,  we,  the  underwritten 
members  of  the  majority  on  that  question,  deem  it  incumbent  on 
us,  not  only  from  the  respect  we  owe  to  our  constituents,  and  our 
responsibility  to  them,  but  in  order  to  prevent  doubt  and  mis- 
representation, to  enter  on  the  Journals  of  the  House  the  con- 
siderations which  have  influenced  our  decision  on  this  subject, 
and  our  principal  objections  to  those  articles.  We  are  satisfied 
that  the  people  of  Virginia  would  never  have  ratified  the  Consti- 
tution of  the  United  States,  but  from  a  confident  hope  and  firm 
persuasion  of  speedily  seeing  it  much  more  materially  altered 
and  amended  than  it  would  be  by  ratifying  the  propositions  lately 
submitted  by  Congress  to  the  State  Legislatures.  That  although 
we  consider  some  of  the  amendments  offered  as  similar,  and 
others  nearly  equivalent,  to  a  part  of  the  amendments  proposed 
by  Virginia  and  other  States,  yet  that  some  of  them  which  seem 
analogous  to  other  amendments  so  proposed,  are  not  substantially 
the  same  and  fall  short  of  affording  the  same  security  to  personal 
rights,  or  of  so  effectually  guarding  against  the  apprehended  mis- 
chiefs of  the  government ;  of  this  description  we  consider  the 
3rd,  8th,  1 1  th  and  1 2th  articles.  We  conceive  that  the  3rd  article, 
which  seems  given  in  lieu  of  the  15th,  i6th,  19th  and  20th 
articles  of  the  bill  of  rights  proposed  by  the  Virginia  Conven- 
tion, will  not  bear  a  comparison  with  these  articles.  The  15  th 
expressly  declares  the  right  of  the  people  to  assemble  together  to 
consult  for  the  common  good,  to  instruct  their  representatives, 
and  to  petition  for  redress  of  grievances.     The  i6th  asserts  the 


AMENDMENTS  PROPOSED  BY  CONGRESS.  32 1 

right  of  the  people  to  freedom  of  speech,  and  of  writing  and  pub- 
lishing their  sentiments,  and  secures  the  liberty  of  the  press. 
The  19th  and  20th  hold  sacred  the  rights  of  conscience,  secure 
to  every  religious  sect  or  society  the  most  perfect  equality,  and 
effectually  guard  against  any  religious  establishments. 

**  The  3rd  amendment,  recommended  by  Congress,  does  not 
prohibit  the  rights  of  conscience  from  being  violated  or  infringed  ; 
and  although  it  goes  to  restrain  Congress  from  passing  laws  es- 
tablishing any  national  religion,  they  might,  notwithstanding,  levy 
taxes  to  any  amount,  for  the  support  of  religion  or  its  preachers  ; 
and  any  particular  denomination  of  Christians  might  be  so 
favored  and  supported  by  the  General  Government  as  to  give  it 
a  decided  advantage  over  others,  and  in  process  of  time  render 
it  as  powerful  and  dangerous  as  if  it  was  established  as  the 
national  religion  of  the  country. 

"  This  amendment  does  not  declare  and  assert  the  right  of  the 
people  to  speak  and  publish  their  sentiments,  nor  does  it  secure 
the  liberty  of  the  press.  Should  these  valuable  rights  be  in- 
fringed or  violated  by  the  arbitrary  decisions  of  Judges,  or  by 
any  other  means  than  a  legislative  act  directly  to  that  effect,  the 
people  would  have  no  avowed  principle  in  the  Constitution  to 
which  they  might  resort  for  the  security  of  these  rights. 

"  The  right  of  the  people  to  instruct  their  representatives,  and 
their  right  to  consult  with  each  other  for  the  common  good,  seem 
too  evident  to  be  questioned  in  a  republican  government ;  yet, 
these  rights  are  denied  by  Congress,  and  they  have  refused  to 
allow  any  amendment  declaratory  of  them,  as  we  discover  by'k 
their  Journals  ;  and  even  the  humble  privilege  of  petitioning 
against  oppression  is  not  fully  asserted  or  secured  ;  as  this  privi- 
lege may  be  abridged  or  rendered  nugatory  without  any  law  upon 
the  subject ;  not  to  mention  other  means,  it  might  be  defeated  by 
a  rule  of  either  House,  without  violating  the  3rd  article  of  the 
amendments. 

"  This  amendment  then,  when  considered  as  it  relates  to  any 
of  the  rights  it  is  pretended  to  secure,  will  be  found  totally  inade- 
quate, and  betrays  an  unreasonable,  unjustifiable,  but  a  studied 
departure  from  the  amendment  proposed  by  Virginia  and  other 
Slates,  for  the  protection  of  their  rights.  We  conceive  that  this 
amendment  is  dangerous  and  fallacious,  as  it  tends  to  lull  the 
apprehensions  of  the  people  on  these  important  points,  without 


322      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

affording  them  security  ;  and  mischievous,  because  by  setting 
bounds  to  Congress,  it  will  be  considered  as  the  only  restriction 
on  their  power  over  these  rights  ;  and  thus  certain  powers  in  the 
government,  which  it  has  been  denied  to  possess,  will  be  recog- 

,  nized  without  being  properly  guarded  against  abuse. 

•  "  The  8th  article  of  the  proposed  amendments,  so  far  from 
securing  the  valuable  trial  by  jury  of  the  vicinage  in  criminal 
prosecutions,  leaves  Congress  the  same  power  to  abridge  this 
right  as  they  possess  by  the  original  Constitution.  They  have 
already  by  law  fixed  the  districts  co-extensive  with  the  respective 
States  ;  and  they  will  at  all  times  possess  the  power  of  regulating 
the  districts  at  pleasure,  so  that  there  appears  to  us  nothing  in 
this  amendment  to  restrain  government  from  carrying  a  man 
accused  of  a  crime,  out  of  his  own  neighborhood  to  any  distance 
within  the  limits  of  a  State,  to  be  tried  by  strangers,  perhaps 
enemies,  where  the  advantages  of  this  excellent  mode  of  trial 
might  be  entirely  defeated,  and  where  a  person  obnoxious  to 
Congress,  might  fall  an  innocent  sacrifice  to  their  resentment. 

''We  do  not  find  that  the  nth  article  is  asked  for  by  Virginia 
or  any  other  State ;  we  therefore  conceive  that  the  people  of  Vir- 
ginia should  be  consulted  with  respect  to  it,  even  if  we  did  not. 
doubt  the  propriety  of  adopting  it ;  but  it  appears  to  us  highly 
exceptionable.  If  it  is  meant  to  guard  against  the  extension  of 
the  powers  of  Congress  by  implication,  it  is  greatly  defective,  and 
does  by  no  means  comprehend  the  idea  expressed  in  the  17th 
article  of  amendments  proposed  by  Virginia  ;  and  as  it  respects 
personal  rights  might  be  dangerous,  because  should  the  rights  of 
the  people  be  invaded  or  called  in  question,  they  might  be  re- 
quired to  show  by  the  Constitution  what  rights  they  have  re- 
tained ;  and  such  as  could  not  from  that  instrument  be  proved  to 
be  retained,  they  might  be  denied  to  possess.  Of  this  there  is 
ground  to  be  apprehensive,  when  Congress  are  already  seen 
denying  certain  rights  of  the  people  heretofore  deemed  clear  and 
unexceptionable. 

"We  conceive  that  the  12th  article  would  come  up  to  the  ist 
article  of  the  Virginia  amendments,  were  it  not  for  the  words  *  or 
to  the  people.'  It  is  not  declared  to  be  the  people  of  the  respec- 
tive States  ;  but  the  expression  applies  to  the  people  generally  as 
citizens  of  the  United  States,  and  leaves  it  doubtful  what  powers 


VIRGINIA   RESOLUTIONS  OF  DISAPPROVAL.  323 

are  reserved  to  the  State  Legislatures.  Unrestrained  by  the  Con- 
stitution or  these  amendments,  Congress  might,  as  the  supreme 
ruler  of  the  people,  assume  those  powers  which  properly  belong 
to  the  respective  States,  and  thus  gradually  effect  an  entire 
consolidation. 

"  We  consider  that  of  the  many  and  important  amendments 
recommended  by  the  Conventions  of  Virginia  and  other  States, 
these  propositions  contain  all  that  Congress  are  disposed  to  grant ; 
that  all  the  rest  are  by  them  deemed  improper,  and  that  these  are 
offered  in  full  satisfaction  of  the  whole  :  and  although  the  ratifi- 
cation of  a  part  of  the  amendments  that  have  been  prayed  for  by 
Virginia  would  not  absolutely  preclude  us  from  urging  others,  yet 
we  conceive  that  by  the  acceptance  of  particular  articles,  we  are 
concluded  as  to  the  points  they  relate  to.  Considering  therefore 
that  they  are  far  short  of  what  the  people  of  Virginia  wish,  and 
have  asked,  and  deeming  them  by  no  means  sufficient  to  secure 
the  rights  of  the  people,  or  to  render  the  government  safe  and 
desirable,  we  think  our  countrymen  ought  not  to  be  put  off  with 
amendments  so  inadequate. 

That  being  satisfied  of  the  defects  and  dangerous  tendency  of 
these  four  articles  of  the  proposed  amendments,  we  are  con- 
strained to  withhold  our  assent  to  them  ;  but  unwilling  for  the 
present  to  determine  on  their  rejection,  we  think  it  our  duty  to 
postpone  them  until  the  next  session  of  Assembly,  in  order 
that  the  people  of  Virginia  may  have  an  opportunity  to  con- 
sider of  them,  and  judge  for  themselves  ;  and  that  the  members 
of  the  Legislature  may  be  enabled  to  consult  with,  and  know 
the  sentiments  of  their  constituents  on  the  subject." 

S.  T.  Mason  was  one  of  the  eight  members  of  the  Senate 
who  signed  these  resolutions,  which  were  published  shortly 
afterwards  in  the  Richmond  paper.'  The  House  of  Dele- 
gates appointed  some  of  its  members  to  confer  with  a 
delegation  from  the  Senate  on  this  subject,  and  Stevens 
Thomson  Mason '  was  one  of  the  three  senators  chosen  for 

^  Journal  of  the  Virginia  Senate,  1789.  The  Virginia  Independent  Chronicle^ 
January  13,  1790. 

'  Stevens  Thomson  Mason  was  the  grandfather  of  Stevens  Thomson  Mason, 
the  early  *' boy  governor  "  of  Michigan,  one  of  the  States  carved  out  of  Vir- 
ginia's western  territory. 


324      UFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

the  purpose.  The  Senate,  on  the  14th  of  December,  ordered 
that  Mr.  Mason  should  acquaint  the  House  of  Delegates 
that  they  adhered  to  their  determination  not  to  ratify  the 
amendments  except  in  the  conditional  form  declared  by 
their  resolutions.  The  lower  House  of  the  Virginia  Legis- 
lature at  this  session  was  under  the  influence  of  such  Feder- 
alists as  General  Henry  Lee.  But  in  the  Senate,  the  coun- 
sels of  George  Mason,  of  Henry,  Grayson,  and  R.  H.  Lee 
bore  fruit. 

Jefferson  returned  to  America  from  Paris  in  the  fall  of 
1789,  to  take  his  place  in  Washington's  Cabinet.  John 
Mason  had  written  to  him  offering  him  a  passage  on  one  of  * 
his  vessels,  early  in  the  summer  ;  and  Jefferson  in  replying, 
on  the  1 6th  of  July,  says  :  **  I  beg  you  to  remember  me  in 
the  most  friendly  terms  to  your  father.  I  have  put  off  an- 
swering his  letter  because  I  expected  constantly  to  make 
my  voyage  to  America  and  to  see  him  at  his  own  house." ' 
He  sailed  from  London  to  Norfolk  in  October,  and  visiting 
friends  all  along  the  route  from  Norfolk,  reached  "  Monti- 
cello  "  only  two  days  before  Christmas.  Setting  out  for  New 
York  on  the  ist  of  March,  1790,  Jefferson  stopped,  on  his 
way,  in  Alexandria,  where  the  mayor  and  citizens  gave  him 
a  public  reception.  He  did  not,  however,  go  to  "  Gunston 
Hall,"  owing  to  the  badness  of  the  roads  at  this  season. 

On  the  1 2th  of  March,  1790,  William  Grayson,  the  distin- 
guished Virginia  Senator,  died  at  Dumfries,  on  his  way  to 
Congress,  and  George  Mason,  it  was  hoped,  would  be  in- 
duced to  fill  the  vacancy.  Governor  Randolph  wrote  to  \ 
him  announcing  his  appointment  by  the  Executive,  as  the 
Legislature  was  not  in  session  : 

Richmond,  March  25th,  1790. 

To  CoL.  George  Mason. 

Sir  : — I  do  myself  the  honor  to  enclose  you  a  commission  ap- 
pointing you  a  senator  for  the  State  in  the  room  of  Col.  Grayson 
deceased. 

'  Jefferson's  "Works/'  11.  A.  Washington,  vol.  iii.,  p.  72. 


APPOINTED    TO   UNITED  STATES  SENATE.         325 

Permit  me  to  intreat  your  acceptance  of  this  commission.  The 
very  important  subjects  now  before  Congress,  so  interesting  to 
America  in  general,  and  more  especially  to  your  native  State,  call 
for  the  counsels  of  the  wisest  of  her  citizens. 

Impressed  with  the  fullest  conviction  of  your  abilities  and  zeal 
for  the  welfare  of  your  country,  I  cannot  doubt  your  compliance 
with  the  unanimous  wishes  of  the  Executive. 

I  am,  &c., 

Beverley  Randolph.* 

The  Richmond  paper  of  the  31st  of  March  announced: 
"  The  Hon.  George  Mason,  Esq :  is  appointed  a  senator  of 
the  United  States,  in  the  room  of  the  Hon.  Col.  William 
Grayson,  deceased.** " 

But  Colonel  Mason  was  not  to  be  prevailed  upon  to  take 
the  office,  and  Governor  Randolph,  on  the  same  day  issued 
the  following  proclamation  : 

Virginia  to  wit : 

George  Mason,  Esq  :  who  was  duly  chosen  a  senator  for  this 
Commonwealth  in  pursuance  of  the  Constitution  for  the  United 
States  of  America,  having  refused  to  act  during  the  recess  of  the 
Legislature  of  the  Commonwealth,  I,  Beverley  Randolph,  being 
governor  or  chief  magistrate  of  the  Commonwealth,  have  there- 
fore thought  fit  and  with  the  advice  and  consent  of  the  privy 
council,  or  council  of  state,  and  by  virtue  of  the  said  Constitution 
to  appoint  John  Walker,  Esq  :  to  be  and  act  as  a  senator  for  the 
Commonwealth  until  the  next  meeting  of  the  Legislature  thereof. 

Given  under  my  hand  and  the  seal  of  the  Commonwealth,  this 
31st  day  of  March,  1790. 

[seal.]  Beverley  Randolph.* 

At  the  meeting  of  the  Assembly  in  the  autumn  of  this 
year,  James  Monroe  was  elected  to  fill  out  Grayson's  term, 
and  for  the  next  succeeding  six  years.. 

'  Execntive  Journal,  State  Library,  Richmond. 

•  The  Virginia  Independent  Chroniele^  etc.,  1790. 

'  Mason  Papers.  i 


/ 


326      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

Colonel  Mason  alludes  to  his  appointment  to  the  Senate 
in  the  following  letter  to  his  son  : 

Virginia,  Gunston  Hall, 
May  20tli,  1790. 
Dear  John  : 

I  take  the  opportunity  per  the  ship  Confidence  Capt.  de  Bore* 
to  send  you,  via  Havre  de  Grace  (where  the  ship  is  to  touch  for 
orders)  a  duplicate  of  my  letter  of  the  27  th  of  April  last  via  New 
York,  together  with  a  duplicate  of  my  letter  of  the  same  date, 
and  by  the  same  route,  to  Messrs.  Fenwick,  Mason,  &  Company, 
covering  the  first  bill  of  a  letter  of  exchange  on  Messrs  :  Thomas 
Clagett  &  Company  merchants  in  London  for  ;^5oo  sterling, 
payable  to  me,  and  by  me  endorsed  to  your  house.  I  now 
enclose  the  second  bill  of  the  same  etc. 

Capt.  Fenwick  has  been  obliged  to  charter  the  ship  Confidence 
at  a  very  low  freight  rather  than  send  her  back  (unchartered)  in 
ballast,  which  has  been  the  fate  of  many  of  the  ships  sent  out  to 
America  for  wheat  and  flour,  and  has  reduced  freights  this  year 
lower  than  ever  they  were  known  before.  My  reason  for  remit- 
ting the  above  mentioned  second  bill  by  this  conveyance,  via 
Havre  de  Grace,  is,  that  it  is  uncertain  when  your  ship  the  Wash- 
ington will  be  ready  to  sail.  I  fear  it  will  be  very  difficult  to  pro- 
cure a  load  for  her  ;  for  the  confusion  and  uncertain  state  of 
afifairs  in  France  makes  people  cautious  of  venturing  their  prop- 
erty there,  which  together  with  the  low  price  of  tobacco  at  that 
market  last  fall,  discourages  everybody  from  shipping  thither,  and 
it  will  not  answer  to  purchase  on  your  own  accounts,  tobacco 
now  selling  here  from  18/  to  20/  per  hundred  Virginia  currency 
and  expected  to  be  higher,  at  the  same  time  that  exchange  for 
bills  on  London  is  at  15  to  20  per  ct. 

I  heartily  wish  the  French  nation  success  in  establishing  their 
new  government,  upon  the  principles  of  liberty,  and  the  sacred 
rights  of  human  nature  ;  but  I  dread  the  consequences  of  their 
affairs  remaining  so  long  in  an  unsettled  state.  Their  finances,  ^ 
their  commerce,  and  some  of  their  most  important  interests  must 
suffer  exceedingly  by  it ;  besides  the  risk  of  the  most  respectable 
part  of  the  people  (which  is  always  found  in  the  middle  walks  of 


LETTERS  TO  HIS  SON  JOHN.  327 

life)  being  disgusted  and  worn  down  with  so  long  a  scene  of  doubt 
and  uncertainty,  not  to  say  anarchy. 

•  •••••••• 

I  have  lately  been  appointed  a  senator  for  the  commonwealth 
of  Virginia,  in  the  Senate  of  the  United  States,  but  have  refused 

to  serve. 

•  •••••••• 

Your  affectionate  father, 

G.  Mason. 
John  Mason,  Esquire, 

Merchant  in  Bordeaux.' 

In  this  letter  Colonel  Mason  speaks  of  having  ''just 
recovered  from  a  three  months'  fit  of  the  gout,"  and  doubt- 
less his  state  of  health  had  something  to  do  with  his  deter- 
mination to  remain  in  private  life.  He  wrote  again  to  his 
son  about  two  weeks  later  : 

Virginia,  Gunston  Hall, 
June  3,  1790. 
Dear  John  : 

This  will  be  delivered  you  by  your  partner  Mr.  Joseph  Fen- 
wick,  and  as  he  proposes  going  by  land  to  Boston,  and  embark- 
ing from  thence,  or  from  Portsmouth  in  New  Hampshire,  it  will 
hardly  come  to  your  hands  before  the  latter  end  of  September, 
before  which  it  is  probable  I  shall  have  other  different  oppor- 
tunities of  writing  to  you.  Mr.  Fenwick's  long  stay  in  America, 
and  the  necessity  you  will  be  under  of  staying  in  Bordeaux,  some 
time  after  his  arrival,  to  adjust  and  fully  settle  your  affairs,  so  as 
to  take  away  all  cause  for  any  confusion  or  dispute  hereafter, 
will,  I  fear,  prevent  your  embarking  for  America  this  year ; 
unless  you  can  get  a  passage  to  South  Carolina,  so  as  to  arrive 
there  in  the  month  of  November,  for  I  would  wish  you  to  avoid 
a  winter  passage,  especially  after  your  late  long  ill  state  of  health. 
And  therefore  I  think  you  had  better  stay  in  France  until  next 
spring,  than  risk  passage  in  the  depth  of  winter ;  more  particu- 
larly if  you  come  to  any  of  the  northern  or  middle  States. 
Should  you  spend  this  winter  in  France,  and  find  Bordeaux  still 
disagree  with  your  constitution,  I  would  advise  you  to  go  to 

^  MS.  Letter. 


328     UFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

Marseilles,  or  some  place  in  the  south  [of]  France,  and  return  to 
Bordeaux  in  the  spring ;  as  you  will  probably  not  meet  with  a 
passage  from  any  of  the  ports  in  the  Mediterranean,  and  even  if 
you  could,  the  danger  of  falling  into  the  hands  of  the  Algerines 
is  such  a  shocking  circumstance,  as  I  would  have  you  by  all 
means  avoid. 

I  would  strongly  recommend  your  availing  yourself  of  every 
means  and  opportunity  of  making  yourself  acquainted  with  the 
commercial  customs  of  France,  and  what  of  their  produce  or 
manufactures  will  suit  the  respective  States  here,  and  can  be 
imported  upon  advantageous  terms,  so  as  to  be  able  to  give  satis- 
factory information  to  the  merchants  in  our  different  sea  port 
towns,  which  you  will  find  of  infinite  advantage  to  your  house, 
when  you  make  the  tour  you  propose  through  the  United  States  ; 
which  I  still  think  it  will  be  proper  for  you  to  do. 

•  ••••...a 

Adieu,  my  dear  John,  and  believe  me. 

Your  most  affectionate  father, 

G.  Mason. 
John  Mason,  Esq  : 

Merchant  in  Bordeaux.* 

Colonel  Mason  had  written  to  Jefferson  recommending 

Mr.  Fenwick  as  consul  to  Bordeaux,  and  Jefferson  replied  as 

follows : 

New  York,  June  13,  1790. 

Dear  Sir  : — I  have  deferred  acknowledging  the  receipt  of 
your  favor  of  March  i6th,  expecting  daily  that  the  business  of 
the  consulships  would  have  been  finished.  But  this  was  delayed 
by  the  President's  illness,  and  a  very  long  one  of  my  own,  so 
that  it  is  not  till  within  these  two  or  three  days  that  it  has  been 
settled.  That  of  Bordeaux  is  given  to  Mr.  Fenwick,  according 
to  your  desire.  The  commission  is  making  out,  and  will  be 
signed  to-morrow  or  next  day. 

I  intended  fully  to  have  had  the  pleasure  of  seeing  you  at 
Gunston  Hall  on  my  way  here,  but  the  roads  being  so  bad  that 
I  was  obliged  to  leave  my  own  carriage  to  get  along  as  it  could, 
and  to  take  my  passage  in  the  stage,  I  could  not  deviate  from  the 

*  Mason  Papers. 


JEFFERSON    TO  GEORGE  MASON.  329 

Stage  road.  I  should  have  been  happy  in  a  conversation  with  you 
on  the  subject  of  our  new  government,  of  which,  though  I  approve 
of  the  mass,  I  would  wish  to  see  some  amendments,  further  than 
those  which  have  been  proposed,  and  fixing  it  more  surely  on  a 
republican  basis.  I  have  great  hopes  that  pressing  forward  with  * 
constancy  to  these  amendments,  they  will  be  obtained  before  the 
want  of  them  will  do  any  harm.  To  secure  the  ground  we  gain, 
and  gain  what  more  wc  can,  is,  I  think,  the  wisest  course.  I 
think  much  has  been  gained  by  the  late  Constitution ;  for  the 
former  was  terminating  in  anarchy,  as  necessarily  consequent  to 
inefficiency^ 

The  House  of  Representatives  have  voted  to  remove  to  Balti- 
more, by  a  majority  of  53  against  6.  This  was  not  the  effect  of 
choice,  but  of  confusion  into  which  they  had  been  brought  by  the 
event  of  other  questions,  and  their  being  hampered  with  the  rules 
of  the  House.  It  is  not  certain  what  will  be  the  vote  of  the 
Senate.  Some  hope  an  opening  will  be  given  to  convert  it  into 
a  vote  of  the  temporary  seat  at  Philadelphia,  and  the  permanent 
one  at  Georgetdwn.  The  question  of  assumption  will  be  brought 
on  again,  and  its  event  is  doubtful.  Perhaps  its  opponents  would 
be  wiser  to  be  less  confident  in  their  success,  and  to  compromise 
by  agreeing  to  assume  the  State  debts  still  due  to  individuals,  so 
as  to  put  the  States  in  the  shoes  of  those  of  their  creditors  whom 
they  have  paid  off.  Great  objections  lie  to  this,  but  not  so  great 
as  an  assumption  of  the  unpaid  debts  only.  My  duties  preventing 
me  from  mingling  in  these  questions,  I  do  not  pretend  to  be  very 
competent  to  their  decision.  In  general,  I  think  it  necessary  to 
give  as  well  as  take  in  a  government  like  ours. 

I  have  some  hope  of  visiting  Virginia  in  the  fall,  in  which  case 
1  shall  still  flatter  myself  with  the  pleasure  of  seeing  you  ;  in  the 
meantime,  I  am  with  unchanged  esteem  and  respect,  my  dear  sir. 

Your  most  obedient  friend  and  servant.  * 

Jefferson  on  his  return  to  "  Monticello  "  in  September 
travelled  again  in  his  own  carriage,  Madison  with  him, 
stopping  two  days  at  "  Mount  Vernon,"  and  it  is  highly 
probable  he  visited  **  Gunston  Hall  "  at  this  time.  George 
Mason  in  this  year,  or  perhaps  a  little  earlier,  resigned  the 

*  **  Jefferson's  Works,"  H.  A.  Washington,  vol.  iii.,  p.  147. 


330     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON 


office  of  justice  of  the  peace,  which  he  had  probably  held 
since  his  early  manhood.  His  name  is  given,  with  those  of 
Washington,  McCarty,  Bryan  Fairfax,  and  others,  in  a  list 
preserved  of  the  justices  of  Fairfax  County  in  1770.'  Twenty 
years  later  the  records  state  that  on  the  21st  of  June,  1790, 
the  clerk  of  the  court  of  Fairfax  County,  after  certifying 
that  the  court  recommended  George  Augustine  Washington 
and  others  for  magistrates,  gave  a  list  of  justices,  and  those 
marked  removed,  dead,  etc.,  as  a  true  statement  of  the 
justices  of  the  county : 

"  Robert  Townsend  Hooe,  sherifif ;  George  Mason,  resigned  ; 
Alexander  Henderson,  removed ;  Charles  Broadwater,  dead ; 
George  Washington,  president ;  Martin  Cockburn,  resigned  ; 
Richard  Chichester,  resigned ;  James  Waugh,  resigned.' 


M  a 


Jefferson  in  his  letter  to  George  Mason  had  referred  to 
the  question  of  assumption  then  before  Congress.  It  was 
one  of  the  "  fiscal  manoeuvres  "  of  Alexander  Hamilton, 
which  was  believed  to  be  a  violation  of  the  Constitution, 
and  injurious  to  many  of  the  States.  The  debts  of  the 
several  Commonwealths  were  put  down,  on  a  rough  estimate, 
as  twenty  millions,  and  the  people  generally  assessed  to  pay 
this  amount,  whereas  some  States  had  a  greater,  some  a  less, 
indebtedness  than  others,  and  the  law  thus  acted  unfairly 
upon  them.  It  was  discovered  also  after  the  accounts  were 
settled,  that  the  estimate  had  been  much  too  large.  Eleven 
millions  would  have  been  sufficient,  but  by  the  operation  of 
the  Assumption  Act,  an  additional  debt  was  created,  reaching 
in  a  few  years  to  over  ten  millions.*  The  Virginia  Assembly 
in  December,  1790,  sent  a  memorial  to  Congress  protesting 
against  this  measure.  They  declare  that  "neither  policy, 
justice,  nor  the  Constitution  warrants  it "  ;  that  a  large  por- 
tion of  the  debt  is  already  redeemed  by  the  collection  of 
heavy  taxes,  but  by  this  act  "  a  heavy  debt  and  consequently 

'  **  Virgina  Calendar  Papers,"  vol.  i.,  p.  263. 

•  Jbid.^  vol.  v.,  p.  172. 

»  Randall's  **  Life  of  JcflFcrson,"  vol.  i.,  p.  608. 


VIRGINIA    OPPOSES  ASSUMPTION  ACT.  .    33 1 

heavy  taxes  will  be  entailed  on  the  citizens  of  this  Common- 
wealth from  which  they  can  never  be  relieved  by  all  the 
efforts  of  the  General  Assembly,  whilst  any  part  of  the  debts 
contracted  by  any  State  in  the  American  Union,  and  so 
assumed,  shall  remain  unpaid."  The  act  without  the  smallest 
necessity,  as  they  averred,  extorted  from  the  General  Assem- 
bly the  power  of  taxing  their  own  constituents  for  the  pay- 
ment of  their  own  debts,  in  such  a  manner  as  would  be  best 
suited  to  their  own  ease  and  convenience,  etc.  "Another 
light  in  which  it  appeared  more  odious  and  deformed  "  was 
this :  During  the  discussions  of  the  Federal  Constitution, 
they,  the  memorialists,  were  taught  to  believe  "  that  every 
power  not  expressly  granted  was  retained."  Under  this 
impression  they  ratified  the  Constitution,  but  there  was  no 
clause  in  the  Constitution  authorizing  Congress  in  express 
terms  to  assume  the  debts  of  the  States.**  Stevens  Thomson 
Mason  as  a  member  of  the  Virginia  Senate  endorsed  these 
views,  which  were  those  also  of  his  illustrious  uncle. 

On  the  loth  of  January,  1791,  George  Mason  wrote  two 
letters,  one  to  his  son  John,  and  one  giving  the  news  he  had 
received  from  France  to  his  friend  Thomas  Jefferson. 
Unfortunately  the  less  important  of  these  two  epistles  is 
the  only  one  of  them  that  has  been  preserved.  The  one  to 
Jefferson  has  been  lost,  and  it  is  only  through  the  latter's 
reply  that  anything  can  be  known  of  its  contents.  Colonel 
Mason's  letter  to  his  son  is  as  follows  : 

^GuNSTON  Hall,  January  10,  1791. 
Dear  John  :    x/ 

As  I  presume  you  have  left  Bordeaux  before  this  time,  and  that 
this  letter  may  probably  find  yo^i  in  the  south  of  France,  I  enclose 
you  a  copy  of  my  letter  of  this  date  to  Fen  wick,  Mason,  and  Com- 
pany to  save  myself  the  trouble  of  repeating  its  contents  sepa- 
rately to  you.  This  leaves  me  little  more  to  add  except  telling 
you  that  if  the  Washington  sails  in  time,  I  shall  send  you,  as  you 
desire,  letters  of  introduction  to  some  of  my  friends  in  South 
Carolina,  particularly  to  Col.  William  Washington,  a  gentleman 

*  Journal  of  the  Assembly. 


332      LIFE  AND   CORRESPONDENCE  OP  GEORGE  MASON. 

for  whom  I  have  the  greatest  regard,  and  with  whom  you  were  too 
young  to  be  acquainted  when  he  went  into  the  army.  I  have  the 
pleasure  to  inform  you  that  all  your  brothers  and  sisters  are  well, 
as  is  also  the  family  at  Gunston  Hall.  YMrs.  Mason  returns  you 
many  thanks  for  your  acceptable  present  of  the  political  fan,  and 
gloves,  and  joins  in  our  best  wishes  and  respects  to  you,  with,  dear 
John, 

Your  affectionate  father, 

G.  Mason.*  V 

Jefferson  wote  to  George  Mason,  in  answer  to  his  letter  of 
the  loth  of  January  : 

Philadelphia,  February  4,  1791. 

Dear  Sir  : 

I  am  to  make  you  my  acknowledgments  for  your  favor  of 
January  loth,  and  the  information  from  France  which  it  con- 
tained. It  confirmed  what  I  had  heard  more  loosely  before,  and 
accounts  still  more  recent  are  to  the  same  effect.  I  look  with 
great  anxiety  for  the  firm  establishment  of  the  new  government  in 
France,  being  perfectly  convinced  that  if  it  takes  place  there,  it 
will  spread  sooner  or  later  all  over  Europe.  On  the  contrary,  1 
a  check  there  would  retard  the  revival  of  liberty  in  other  coun-  I 
tries.  I  consider  the  establishment  and  success  of  their  govern-  f 
ment  as  necessary  to  stay  up  our  own,  and  to  prevent  it  from 
falling  back  to  that  kind  of  a  half-way  house,  the  English  Consti- 
tution. It  cannot  be  denied  that  we  have  among  us  a  sect  who 
believe  that  to  contain  whatever  is  perfect  in  human  institutions ; 
that  the  members  of  this  sect  have  many  of  them  names  and 
offices  which  stand  high  in  the  estimation  of  our  countrymen.  I 
still  rely  that  the  great  mass  of  our  community  is  untainted  with 
these  heresies,  as  is  its  head.  On  this  I  build  my  hope  that  we  have 
not  labored  in  vain,  and  that  our  experiment  will  still  prove  that 
men  can  be  governed  by  reason. 

You  have  excited  my  curiosity  in  saying  there  is  a  particular 
circumstance,  little  attended  to,  which  is  continually  sapping  the 
republicanism  of  the  United  States.     What  is  it  ? 

What  is  said  in  our  country  of  the  fiscal  arrangements  now 
going  on  ?    I  really  fear  their  effect  when  I  consider  the  present 

*  Mason  Papers. 


JEFFERSON  ON  FEDERAL  GO  VERNMENT  ME  A  SURES.        333 

temper  of  the  Southern  States.  Whether  these  measures  be  right 
or  wrong  abstractedly,  more  attention  should  be  paid  to  the  gen- 
eral opinion.  However,  all  will  pass — the  Excise  will  pass — the 
Bank  will  pass.  The  only  corrective  of  what  is  corrupt  in  our 
present  form  of  government,  will  be  the  augmentation  of  the 
numbers  in  the  lower  House,  so  as  to  get  a  more  agricultural  rep- 
resentation, which  may  put  that  interest  above  that  of  the  stock- 
jobbers. 

I  had  no  occasion  to  sound  Mr.  Madison  on  your  fears 
expressed  in  your  letter.  I  knew  before,  as  possessing  his  senti- 
ments fully  on  that  subject,  that  his  value  for  you  was  undimin- 
ished. I  have  always  heard  him  say  that  though  you  and  he 
appeared  to  differ  in  your  systems,  yet  you  were  in  truth  nearer 
together  than  most  persons  who  were  classed  under  the  same 
appellation.  You  may  quiet  yourself  in  the  assurance  of  posses- 
sing his  complete  esteem. 

I  have  been  endeavoring  to  obtain  some  little  distinction  for 
our  useful  customers,  the  French.  But  there  is  a  particular  inter- 
est opposed  to  it,  which  I  fear  will  prove  too  strong.  We  shall 
soon  see.  I  will  send  you  a  copy  of  a  report  I  have  given  in  as 
soon  as  it  is  printed.  I  know  there  is  one  part  of  it  contrary  to 
your  sentiments  ;  yet  I  am  not  sure  you  will  not  become  sensible 
that  a  change  should  be  slowly  preparing. 

Certainly,  whenever  I  pass  your  road,  I  shall  do  myself  the 
pleasure  of  turning  into  it.  Our  last  year's  experiment,  however, 
is  much  in  favor  of  that  by  Newgate. 

I  am  with  great  respect  and  esteem,  dear  Sir, 

Your  friend  and  servant.  * 

No  doubt  Jefferson  received  later  an  explanation  of  the 
remark  which  so  excited  his  curiosity,  **  the  particular  circum- 
stance, little  attended  to,  which  is  continually  sapping  the 
republicanism  of  the  United  States."  But  for  us  there  is 
no  answer  to  the  query,  though  we  may  surmise  that  it  had 
reference  to  the  powers  given  the  Federal  courts.  The  Judi- 
ciary Act  of  1789,  which  created  the  inferior  United  States 
courts   and   so   greatly   extended    the  jurisdiction   of    the 


1  «« 


JeflTerson's  Works,"  H.  A.  Washington,  vol.  iii.,  p.  209. 


334      ^^^^  ^^^  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

Supreme  Court,  doubtless  filled  George  Mason  with  alarm. 
The  fears  he  expresses  to  Jefferson  lest  Madison  might  be 
estranged  from  him,  it  is  pleasant  to  know,  admitted  of  a 
satisfactory  reply.  More  and  more  as  the  years  went  on, 
and  the  younger  statesman  watched  the  issue  of  the  work  in 
which  he  and  Mason  had  both  been  leaders,  must  Madison 
have  understood  that  they  were  "  nearer  together  "  in  their 
systems  than  many  who  were  classed  as  of  one  party.  Or 
rather  Mason's  system  was  to  be  acknowledged  by  Madison 
within  a  decade  as  that  on  which  the  liberties  of  his  country- 
men depended.  The  report  to  which  Jefferson  refers  was 
delivered  on  the  ist  of  February,  1 791,  and  related  to  the  cod 
and  whale  fisheries.' 

The  following  letters  were  written  in  April  and  July  to 
John  Mason  who  was  about  to  return  to  America : 

Virginia,  Gunston  Hall. 
April  i6th,  1791. 

Dear  John  : 

Enclosed  is  a  letter  (to  which  I  refer)  written  in  January  and 
intended  to  have  been  sent  via  Baltimore  or  Philadelphia,  but 
hearing  of  no  ships  from  either  of  those  places  to  Bordeaux,  it  is 
now  sent  per  the  Washington,  She  has  been  so  long  detained 
here  by  the  winter's  frost,  by  having  considerable  repairs  made 
to  her,  and  above  all  by  the  difficulty  of  procuring  a  load  of 
tobacco  for  her,  in  the  unsettled  and  uncertain  state  of  the 
tobacco  trade  in  France,  that  I  think  it  probable  you  may  have 
embarked  for  America  before  her  arrival  at  Bordeaux  ;  neverthe- 
less as  you  may  perhaps  have  waited  her  arrival,  I  enclose  you 
some  letters  of  introduction  to  my  friends  in  Charles  Town, 
South  Carolina,  which  you  will  seal  and  deliver  if  you  take  that 
route,  though  I  think  it  a  bad  season  of  the  year  to  come  to  that 
warm  country,  and  you  will  have  a  very  fatiguing  journey  from 
thence  to  Virginia,  in  the  latter  end  of  the  summer,  which  may 
be  injurious  to  your  health  after  your  long  indisposition.  I 
therefore  really  think  if  you  expect  to  arrive  in  America  before 
the  beginning  or  middle  of  September  you  had  better  take  your 

'  JHd,^  vol.  vii.,  p.  538. 


LETTERS   TO  JOHN  MASON,  335 

passage  to  some  of  the  Northern  or  Eastern  States,  and  make  a 
tour  to  the  Southern  States  in  the  course  of  next  winter,  and  if 
you  purpose  to  establish  a  house  in  the  commission  line  upon 
Potomac  River,  your  principal  American  consignments  here  will 
be  from  the  Eastern  States,  and  therefore  a  tour  through  their 
principal  sea  port  towns,  on  your  way  home,  in  order  to  settle  a 
correspondence,  may  be  an  object  of  importance.  However  with 
respect  to  your  embarking  for  one  of  the  Southern  or  Eastern 
States,  the  season  of  the  year,  in  which  you  expect  to  arrive  will 
be  your  best  guide.  I  have  shipped  per  the  Washingion  thirty- 
three  hogsheads  of  tobacco.     .     .     . 

I  have  received  your  letters  dated  in  October  and  November 
last,  and  rejoice  to  hear  that  your  health  is  in  a  great  measure 
restored.     I  rejoice  also  to  hear  that  I  have  been  mistaken  in  my 
opinion  respecting  the  paper  money,  yet  I  think  it  was  founded 
on  reason  as  well  as  experience  ;  but  really  the  French  RevoluV 
tion  from  the  beginning  has  been  attended  with  such  extraordi-l 
nary  circumstances  that  the  man  who  judges  of  it  by  comparisonl 
with  anything  else  in  the  annals  of  mankind,  will  probably  findl 
himself  mistaken. 

No  doubt  you  have  heard  that  an  act  of  Congress  has  passed 
for  fixing  the  permanent  seat  of  government  of  the  Union,  after 
ten  years,  upon  [the]  Potomac,  at  such  place  as  the  President 
should  direct,  between  the  mouth  of  the  Eastern  Branch  and  the 
mouth  of  Conogochieg  (about  sixty  miles  from  each  other)  with 
the  power  of  laying  off  ten  miles  square  for  the  jurisdiction  of 
Congress,  and  fixing  the  spot  for  the  public  buildings,  confining 
the  public  buildings,  however,  to  the  eastern  side  of  the  river. 
The  President  has  had  the  ten  miles  square  laid  off  in  the  follow- 
ing manner.  Beginning  on  the  upper  side  of  the  mouth  of 
Great  Hunting  Creek  and  running  north-west  ten  miles  (which 
includes  the  town  of  Alexandria),  thence  north-east  ten  miles 
(which  crosses  Potomac  River  a  little  above  the  Little  Falls,  and 
includes  all  my  tract  of  land  there  of  about  two  thousand  acres), 
thence  south-east  ten  miles  (which  includes  George  Town  and 
the  navigable  part  of  the  Eastern  Branch),  thence  south-west  to 
the  beginning.  He  has  also  directed  the  city  for  the  seat  of 
government,  within  the  said  ten  miles  square,  to  be  laid  off  in 
the  following  manner.      Beginning  on  Potomac  River  on  the 


336     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

lower  side  the  mouth  of  Rock  Creek  (just  below  George  Town) 
thence  with  the  meanders  of  Potomac  River  to  the  mouth  of  the 
Eastern  Branch  and  up  the  meanders  of  the  Eastern  Branch 
about  two  miles  to  a  point  called  (I  think)  Evan's  Ferry,  thence 
a  course  to  strike  the  main  road  from  George  Town  to  Bladens- 
burg  about  half  a  mile  from  the  ford,  thence  with  the  main  road 
to  the  ford  of  Rock  Creek,  and  with  the  meanders  of  Rock  Creek 
to  the  beginning.  These  last  boundaries  contain  about  four 
thousand  acres,  and  the  proprietors,  I  understand,  have  agreed  to 
give  up  the  whole  of  the  land  (reserving  the  right  of  selling  the 
wood  on  it)  to  defray  the  charge  of  the  public  buildings,  &c, 
on  condition  of  being  paid  the  value  of  their  houses  and  receiv- 
ing again  respectively  half  the  lots  after  the  town  is  laid  off 
and  the  streets  adjusted.  The  spot  for  the  public  buildings 
(which  is  the  most  important  point)  is  not  yet  fixed.  The  Alex- 
andrians, as  usual,  are  very  much  buoyed  up  on  the  occasion 
and  think  their  fortunes  made  forever,  although  it  is  evident 
to  any  cool,  impartial,  sensible  man,  that  if  the  inland  navi- 
gation of  Potomac  and  Shenandoah  is  effectually  completed 
and  the  seat  of  the  federal  government  fixed  near  the  harbor 
of  the  Eastern  Branch,  Alexandria  must  become  a  deserted 
village. 

Adieu  my  dear  son  ;  this,  I  expect  will  be  the  last  opportunity 
I  shall  have  of  writing  to  you  while  you  are  in  Europe.  God  bless 
you  and  send  you  safe  to  your  native  country  and  friends.  I  hope 
I  shall  soon  have  the  pleasure  of  seeing  you,  and  assuring  you 
personally,  how  much  I  am 

Your  affectionate  father, 

G.  Mason. 

P.  S.  Your  friends  here  are  all  well,  except  your  sister  Cooke's 
children,  who  are  under  inoculation  for  the  small-pox,  but  I  believe 
are  in  a  good  way.  We  shall  begin  to  inoculate  here  and  at 
"  Lexington  "  about  the  end  of  May. 

John  Mason,  Esquire, 
Merchant  in  Bordeaux. 

By  the  Washington,  Capt.  Chilton.' 

I  Mason  Papers. 


JAMES  RIVER  MERCHANTS.  337 

GuNSTON  Hall,  July  la,  1791. 
Dear  John  : 

I  did  not  receive  your  letter  of  the  13th  of  May  via  Nantes, 
until  Saturday  the  9th  instant,  after  that  day's  post  had  passed, 
so  that  I  had  no  opportunity  of  conveying  a  letter  to  Norfolk,  until 
this  day's  post.  Herewith  you  will  receive  a  packet  (containing 
several  letters)  which  I  have  put  under  cover  to  Mr.  John  Brent,' 
as  you  desired,  and  hope  it  will  be  in  time ;  but  should  you  have 
arrived,  and  have  left  Norfolk,  before  my  packet  reaches  the 
hands  of  Mr.  Brent,  I  have  desired  him  to  send  it  immediately 
after  you  (per  post)  to  Petersburg  or  Richmond.  The  letters  are 
all  left  open  for  your  perusal ;  you  will  easily  distinguish  which 
are  intended  as  complimentary  introductions,  merely  to  entitle 
you  to  civilities,  and  those  which  may  be  of  use  to  you  in  the  line 
of  business,  or  in  making  you  acquainted  with  the  most  respecta- 
ble merchants,  for  I  have  myself  so  little  acquaintance  with  the 
James  River  merchants,  that  I  am  not  able  to  recommend  such 
as  it  may  be  proper  for  you  to  confide  in.  Most  of  my  letters 
are  to  gentlemen  in  Richmond ;  since  the  death  of  my  worthy 
friend  Colo.  Bland,  I  have  no  intimate  acquaintance  nearer  Peters- 
burg than  Colo.  Heth  and  Mr.  David  Ross.  Colo.  Heth  having 
been  some  years  a  member  of  the  executive  council  in  Richmond, 
and  having  married  some  years  ago  in  the  neighborhood  of 
Petersburg,  and  lived  there  a  good  while,  and  from  his  office  of 
collector  of  the  upper  district  of  James  River,  must  be  as. well 
acquainted  with  the  situation,  and  character  of  all  the  merchants 
there  as  any  man  in  Virginia.  I  believe  he  lives  near  Cabbin 
Point,  or  at  Bermuda  Hundred.  You  will  find  him  a  man  of 
information  and  good  sense,  and  I  am  sure  his  friendship  for  me 
will  induce  him  to  do  you  every  service  in  his  power  ;  and  I  think 
you  can  confide  in  any  information  he  gives  you.  Mr.  Ross  is 
also  a  particular  friend  of  mine,  and  I  think  will  be  ready  to  do 
you  any  good  offices  in  his  power.  I  have  also  received  many 
instances  of  civility  from  Mr.  Alexander,  who  is  a  very  intelligent 
man,  and  well  acquainted  with  business.  He  resided  many  years 
in  France,  and  is  perfectly  acquainted  with  that  country  ;  but  he 
is  a  Scotchman,  and  has  the  character  of  an  artful,  designing  man. 
With  this  caution,  I  think  he  may  be  serviceable  to  you,  and  if  it 

'  John  Brent  was  a  nephew  of  Mrs.  Mason's. 


338      UFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON, 

does  not  in  any  way  interfere  with  his  own  interest,  I  make  no 
doubt  will  take  pleasure  in  being  so  ;  and  I  think  his  acquaint- 
ance is  well  worth  your  cultivating.  Mr.  David  Ross  is  well 
acquainted  with  all  the  merchants  upon  James  River,  and  is 
generally  thought  to  understand  commerce  better  than  any  man  in 
the  State.  He  is  a  man  of  uncommon  penetration,  and  depth  of 
understanding  and  judgment,  by  which  he  has  acquired  immense 
possessions,  but  is  said  to  be  very  much  in  debt.  He  is  a  very 
plain  man  in  his  manners,  and  I  have  always  found  him  a  very 
friendly  man,  but  he  too  is  a  Scotchman.  I  thought  it  necessary, 
however,  to  give  you  the  outlines  of  his  character.  Mr.  Ross 
spends  as  much  of  his  time  in  Richmond  as  in  Petersburg. 

The  Governor,  Colo.  Harvie,  and  Mr.  Marshall  are  all  very 
worthy  men,  and  intimate  friends  of  mine,  but  they  have  never 
been  in  any  mercantile  line,  though  they  may  be  serviceable  to 
you,  in  making  you  acquainted  with  the  most  respectable  mer- 
chants, and  in  promoting  connections  with  the  country  gentle- 
men, if  you  have  a  mind  to  form  such.  Mr.  Hopkins  has  been 
many  years  a  commissioner  of  the  Continental  Loan  Office.  He 
is  well  acquainted  with  everybody  in  that  part  of  the  country,  has 
been  concerned  in  trade,  is  a  man  of  good  sense,  and  has  always 
supported  a  good  character. 

It  is  proper  to  inform  you  that  Colo.  Wood's,  the  Lieutenant 
Governor's  lady  is  a  distant  relation,  a  second  cousin  of  ours, 
and  the  daughter  of  the  late  Reverend  Mr.  Moncure,  the  most 
valuable  friend  I  ever  had  in  my  life. 

Should  you  have  occasion  to  lodge  money  any  time  in  Rich- 
mond, the  iron  chests  in  the  public  treasury  will  be  the  safest 
place.  Colo.  Harvie  is  a  very  intimate  friend  of  Mr.  Ambler,  the 
treasurer,  and  Mr.  Marshall  married  one  of  his  daughters  ;  either 
of  these  gentlemen  can  procure  you  leave  to  do  so.  The  present 
price  of  tobacco  at  Richmond  and  Petersburg  I  am  told  is  from 
17  /j  to  20  /  Virginia  currency,  upon  Potomac  13  /,  and  I 
believe  almost  any  quantity  could  readily  be  bought  here  at  14  / 
or  at  most  15  / .  It  is  unfortunate  you  did  not,  immediately 
upon  the  decree  with  respect  to  tobacco,  charter  and  send  out  a 
French  ship  or  two.  If  you  had  at  this  instant  three  or  four 
French  ships  in  the  Potomac,  they  could  be  readily  loaded  upon 


FIENDS  IN  RICHMOND,  339 

consignment ;  but  I  doubt  you  have  lost  the  time  and  that  it  is  now 
too  late  to  send  orders  for  that  purpose  to  France,  as  I  have  rea- 
son to  believe  several  of  the  merchants  here  have  advised  their 
correspondents  in  Europe  to  charter  French  ships  as  speedily  as 
they  can. 

Pray  write  to  me  as  soon  as  you  arrive  ;  a  letter  per  post  will 
reach  me  in  four  or  five  days  from  Norfolk,  and  in  two  or  three 
from  Richmond.  I  long  to  see  you  exceedingly,  and  so  do  all 
your  brothers  and  sisters ;  yet  I  think  if  you  load  the  ship  in 
James  River,  you  had  better  not  leave  that  part  of  the  country, 
until  you  despatch  her. 

Your  brother  George  is  in  much  better  health  than  he  has 
been  for  two  years  past.  He  thinks  he  received  much  benefit, 
last  summer,  from  the  use  of  the  Augusta  Springs.  He  and  your 
brother  William  spend  this  season  there  also.  They  set  out  the 
day  before  yesterday,  and  don't  intend  to  return  before  Sep- 
tember. 

I  wish  to  hear  as  soon  as  possible  how  your  health  is,  and  what 
effect  the  voyage  has  had  upon  it ;  I  hope  a  good  one,  and  am^ 
dear  John, 

Your  most  affectionate  father, 

G.  Mason.' 

Of  the  friends  and  acquaintances  spoken  of  by  Colonel 
Mason  in  this  letter,  several  will  be  recognized  as  prominent 
names  of  contemporary  statesmen.  Colonel  Bland,  George 
Mason's  ally  in  the  Convention,  though  a  silent  one ;  "  Mr. 
Marshall,*'  his  able  antagonist,  who  as  Chief  Justice  was  to 
do  so  much  later  towards  moulding  the  plastic  form  of  the 
new  Confederation  into  its  permanent  shape,  and  giving  it 
that  bias  towards  consolidation  so  much  to  be  deplored; 
and  Colonel  Harvie,  a  member  of  the  Continental  Congress, 
who  was  long  a  resident  of  Richmond,  and  afterwards 
removed  to  **  Belvidere,**  the  beautiful  country-seat  of  the 
Byrds  on  James  River.  David  Ross  was  a  Scotch  merchant 
who  acquired  a  large  landed  property  in  various  parts  of 
Virginia's  broad  domain,  and  was  the  original  owner  of  the 

*  Mason  Papers. 


life- 

■t.-tir/.T'  ^3£  Tr^asETST.  -ro  2  sat  :f  K3caard  Ait^ftfr  cf  Yocfc- 
^:>v:t.  -»■>  3ad  seaa  2  ETBii  xb£  cj^-^iTrnVTr  cc  Coknd 
3taa<un  jccacT-.  AatiCeico&Waod-yatcjMBeerof»Jaia« 
27  3Q=T5ifg£.  aa  3e  bs  saJcL  Ejcxics  rxoL  2  jcc^  of  Vb. 
'X'wf  s  ia3>£  aeaa  gri«x  ^  1  firmer  ^^jotrr-    CoKadSor 

asioi^  iun  '  r^  s:  ss  r^=T£  ~  =:  ^  ^2*e  aJce  ^s  'jKobat 

SKsa.  caTiftf  31  cigacaig-  ~  Tbe  :cpcTse=a=Tcs  ~  ^tkc  Ex»ly- 
of  Mrs.  aJTabtfth  Lcwsds  oc  BboriTtbm^  a  .i^hrc  xs 
-was  Xrs.  Carter,  ^r^f  :^  Hoc  Be=3x===  Ta^e:^^  vfisesCoIo. 
ai  Car^r.  -  ars  d^szT^ced  vrd  rry  c;Qd=ict  =  taebaataoa 
s^ts^jcjoi  before.  a=d  w«  iars  =r=t=a2T  dk^aes  toq  to 
bear  asd  (jetermine  tii«  aartcr  c<  T^t.~  Hk  2cxh  o<  Scp- 
ttmher  vas  naauii  aa  t^  tfaie  aacwin:e»i  tar  tae  ieaacm, 
nith  <iaXe  apparestfy  csScrfcicd  vhh  bcagpss  of  Cbiood 
Xaaca's,  and  ha  ajcrespoodezt  tberetore  prooosed  tial  the 
foraier  shcoZd  aopAc:  "  brxh  t=c-e  asJ  pUc£  fee-  tike  bearing 
erf  the  matter."  ' 


CHAPTER  X. 

CONCLUSION. 

I79»-I792- 

The  new  government  had  not  been  long  in  operation  be- 
fore the  contingency  anticipated  by  George  Mason  in  respect 
to  the  Indiana  Company  arose — the  company  bringing  up 
its  claim  against  Virginia.  There  were  other  land  schemes 
agitated  at  this  time  also,  such  as  the  project  of  Moi^an 
and  Gardoqui,  which  were  calculated  to  affect  seriously 
Virginia's  interests,  and  which  were  closely  watched  by  her 
representatives  in  Congress.'  Colonel  Morgan  issued  a  hand- 
bill, "  inviting  a  settlement  under  the  authority  of  Spain  at 
New  Madrid,  near  the  mouth  of  the  Ohio,  on  the  Spanish 
side,"  as  William  Grayson  writes  Patrick  Henry  in  1789. 
The  colonists  were  promised  the  free  navigation  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi,  and  a  market  at  New  Orleans  free  from  duties  for 
all  the  produce  of  their  lands.  Moigan  was  a  member  of 
the  Indiana  Company,  and  at  the  session  of  the  Vii^inia 
Assembly,  October,  1791,  he  presented  a  "memorial  of  the 
proprietors  and  share-holders  of  a  tract  of  land  called 
Indiana."  It  set  forth  "that  in  the  year  1776  they  did 
inform  the  General  Assembly  of  the  title  to  the  said  tract 
of  land,  by  a  memorial  then  presented  to  them ;  that  al- 
though the  legislature  did  afterward  direct  the  said  land  to 
be  sold  for  the  benefit  of  the  State,  and  did  refuse  to  allow 
the  memorialists  any  compensation  therefor — yet  they  are 
convinced  that  this  proceeded  from  a  want  of  information 

'  "  Vitginik  Calendu  Papen,"  vol.  iv.,  p.  534. 


342      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDBNCB  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

not  then  attainable  ;  and  praying  that  their  right  to  the  said 
land  may  be  investigated  in  the  manner  most  satisfactory  to 
the  General  Assembly,  and  in  case  it  is  established,  that  such 
compensation  may  be  made  to  them  therefor,  as  is  consist- 
ent with  equity."*  Roger  West,  one  of  the  delegates  in  the 
Assembly  from  Fairfax  County,  consulted  George  Mason  as 
to  the  course  to  be  pursued,  and  the  latter  replied  in  the 
following  letter,  from  which  extracts  have  been  given  in  a 
preceding  chapter. 

GuNSTON  Hall,  November  9th,  1791. 

Dear  Sir  : 

Your  favor  of  the  4th  did  not  come  to  my  hands  until  last 
night,  and  the  post  leaving  Colchester  early  to-morrow  morning 
does  not  leave  me  time  to  answer  you  upon  so  important  a  sub- 
ject as  the  Indiana  claim,  either  to  your  satisfaction  or  to  my  own. 
I  have  searched  all  my  papers,  endeavoring  to  find  my  former 
argument  in  the  Assembly,  when  I  was  appointed  to  collect  the 
evidence  and  manage  the  business  on  behalf  of  the  Common- 
wealth, which  (if  I  could  have  found  it)  would  have  given  the 
fullest  information,  but  I  imagine  I  must  have  lent  it  to  some 
member  of  the  Assembly,  who  has  never  returned  it,  and  con- 
ceiving the  matter  after  so  full  an  investigation  and  positive  de- 
termination as  it  then  had,  forever  at  an  end,  I  was  the  less 
careful  in  preserving  my  notes  and  papers.  Several  depositions 
were  then  produced  and  some  witnesses  examined  at  the  bar  of 
the  House,  proving  the  mysterious  and  clandestine  conduct  of 
Sir  William  Johnston  (the  King's  agent)  at  the  treaty  at  Fort 
Stanwix,  when  the  Indiana  Company  obtained  their  deed  from 
the  Indians.  The  council  books  were  also  produced,  in  which 
were  many  entries,  previous  to  the  Indiana  Company's  purchase, 
for  lands  much  further  to  the  westward.  The  Indiana  Company's 
deed  from  the  Indians  was  set  aside  and  a  declaratory  act  passed 
upon  the  subject,  as  well  as  my  memory  serves  me,  in  the  May 
session  of  1779,  principally  upon  the  following  points.  First,  the 
purchase  of  the  same  lands  from  the  Six  Nations  of  Indians,  at 
the  treaty  of  Lancaster  in  the  year  1744,  for  the  use  of  Virginia, 
and  paid  for  with  our  money.     The  book  containing  the  records 

*  Journal  of  the  Assembly. 


LETTER   TO  ROGER    WEST  343 

of  this  treaty  and  the  deed  of  purchase  was  then  produced,  but  I 
have  understood  has  been  since  destroyed,  as  well  as  all  the  other 
Indian  treaties,  made  here  under  the  Icing's  government,  with  the 
books  and  papers  of  the  council  and  of  the  Committee  of  Safety, 
when  General  Arnold's  troops  burned  the  foundry  at  Westham 
in  which  they  had  been  placed  upon  tbe  enemy's  marching  tow- 
ards Richmond.  Second,  because  the  Six  Nations,  who  claimed 
the  lands  by  conquest,  had  lost  their  title  (even  if  they  had  not 
sold  them  at  the  treaty  of  Lancaster)  by  the  same  means  by  which 
they  first  gained  it — conquest — their  tributaries  and  tenants,  the 
Shawnese  and  Delawares,  with  a  mixture  of  the  Six  Nations 
having  been  expelled,  and  driven  over  the  Ohio  (from  whence 
they  never  returned)  and  the  lands  on  this  side  the  Ohio  con- 
quered in  the  war  which  happened  a  little  before  the  Indiana 
Company's  purchase.  Third,  independent  of  the  above  reasons, 
the  deed  to  the  Indiana  Company  by  the  law  of  Virginia  ought 
to  have  been  recorded  (like  all  other  deeds)  either  in  the  county 
where  the  land  lay,  as  in  Augusta,  which  was  the  then  frontier 
county  of  Virginia,  or  in  the  General  Court,  that  for  the  want  of 
this  the  deed  (if  there  had  been  no  other  objection)  was  void  as 
to  all  subsequent  purchasers,  and  that  the  settlers  upon  the  land 
under  Virginia  titles,  of  which  there  were  a  great  many  before 
the  deed  was  recorded  in  Augusta,  were  in  the  equitable  con- 
struction of  the  law,  to  be  considered  as  purchasers.  Fourth, 
because  the  consideration  of  the  deed  was  a  compensation  to  the 
Indian  traders,  for  the  losses  they  had  suffered,  and  it  was 
thought  they  had  no  more  right  to  require  compensation  than  a 
merchant  who  had  his  ship  taken  by  an  enemy's  privateer,  or  any 
other  sufferer  in  the  common  calamities  of  war.  Fifth,  because 
the  traders  to  whom  the  Indian  deed  was  made,  being  every  one 
of  them  citizens  of  Pennsylvania,  from  which  this  trade  with  the 
Indians  was  carried  on,  if  they  had  been  entitled  to  compensation 
at  all,  ought  to  have  had  such  compensation  out  of  the  lands 
under  the  chartered  territory  of  Pennsylvania  (for  whose  benefit 
the  trade  had  been  carried  on,  by  her  own  citizens)  and  not  out 
of  the  lands  of  Virginia,  and  this  appeared  in  the  strongest,  or  if 
I  may  be  allowed  the  expression,  more  barefaced  point  of  view 
as  Pennsylvania  had  at  that  same  treaty  of  Fort  Stanwix  made  a 
large  purchase  from  the  Indians  of  lands  within  her  own  charter. 


344     ^^^^  ^^^  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON, 

I  presume  the  legislature  cannot  regularly  give  any  decision  in 
favor  of  the  Indiana  Company  without  repealing  the  before  men- 
tioned declaratory  act,  and  the  consequences  of  such  a  repeal 
may  extend  much  further  and  produce  effects  which  may  not  at 
first  be  foreseen.  Among  other  things  it  would  certainly  open  a 
door  to  the  revival  of  Col.  Henderson's  and  Company's  claim  to 
Kentucky,  nor  can  any  man  tell  when  it  would  end. 

In  my  humble  opinion  the  matter's  having  been  fully  investigated, 
the  Indiana  Company  heard  by  their  counsel  at  the  bar  of  the  House, 
a  dozen  years  ago,  when  there  was  much  better  evidence  both 
written  and  oral,  than  can  now  possibly  be  had,  and  a  solemn 
determination  then  made,  is  a  sufficient  reason  against  giving 
any  decision  upon  it  now,  when  some  of  the  witnesses  are  dead, 
some  removed  we  don't  know  where,  and  when  even  the  record 
evidence  has  been  destroyed  in  the  events  of  the  late  war.  The 
present  applicant  Mr.  Morgan  is  entitled  to  as  xsiw^  justice  as  any 
other  man,  but  surely  a  man  who  has  endeavored  to  depopulate 
the  United  States  by  seducing  their  citizens  to  quit  their  own 
country  and  settle  in  the  Spanish  territory  has  little  pretensions 
X6  favor  from  us. 

I  have  thus,  sir,  given  you  the  best  information  upon  the  subject 
the  short  time  I  had  would  allow.  I  remember  the  Indiana  Com- 
pany when  their  claim  at  their  own  request  was  before  the  Assem- 
bly in  1779  produced  in  Williamsburg  some  English  lawyers' 
opinions  in  their  favor,  upon  a  printed  state  of  their  case.  To 
show  you  (and  if  you  think  fit  the  Assembly)  what  sort  of  opinions 
the  English  lawyers  were  accustomed  to  give,  when  the  poor 
American  colonies  and  their  rights  were  in  question,  I  enclose 
you  an  opinion  of  Mr.  Attorney-General  Pratt's  in  the  year  1760 
upon  a  dispute  between  the  then  proprietor  of  Maryland  and  the 
people.  Yet  this  is  the  same  Mr.  Pratt  who  has  been  since  trans- 
formed into  Lord  Camden,  the  champion  of  liberty  and  the 
defender  of  the  rights  of  the  people.  I  have  long  kept  it  as  a 
curiosity,  you  will  therefore  be  pleased  to  take  care  of  it  and 
return  it  to  me. 

I  thank  you  exceedingly  for  getting  Mr.  John  Hooe's  petition 
for  a  ferry  postponed  until  the  petition  against  it  comes  down. 
It  is  still  out  among  the  people  of  this  county,  but  I  will  endeavor 
to  get  it  as  soon  as  possible  and  forward  it  to  the  Assembly,  and 


SUIT  BROUGHT  BY  INDIANA   COMPANY.  345 

have  no  doubt  it  will  prove  Mr.  Hooe's  projected  new  ferry  not 
only  unnecessary  but  productive  of  much  injury  and  oppression 
to  the  people  in  its  consequences,  and  calculated  merely  to  serve 
a  local  job. 

I  am  with  great  respect,  dear  Sir, 

Your  most  obedient  servant, 

George  Mason. 
Roger  West,  Esq: 
Now  upon  the  General  Assembly  in  Richmond.' 

The  Indiana  Company  brought  suit  in  the  United  States 
Court  against  Virginia,  and  the  Assembly  of  1792  pronounced 
upon  the  illegality  of  this  proceeding.  The  committee,  after 
quoting  from  the  journal  of  the  Assembly  for  June  9,  1779, 
to  show  that  the  claim  had  been  already  decided,  passed  the 
following  resolution  : 

'*  That  the  jurisdiction  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United 
States  does  not  and  cannot  extend  to  this  case,  it  already  having 
been  decided  on  before  a  tribunal  fully  competent  to  its  decision  ; 
that  the  State  cannot  be  made  a  defendant  in  the  said  court,  at 
the  suit  of  any  individual  or  individuals ;  and  that  the  executive 
be  requested  to  pursue  such  measures  in  this  case,  as  may  seem 
most  conducive  to  the  interest,  honor,  and  dignity  of  this  Com- 
monwealth." * 

The  claim  had  been  prosecuted  by  the  company  for 
twenty-nine  years  at  an  expense  of  over  eighteen  thousand 
dollars,  and  it  involved  a  tract  of  country  embracing  nearly 
three  millions  of  acres.*  Its  final  overthrow  was  a  benefit 
both  to  Virginia  and  to  the  Union. 

The  opinion  of  Attorney-General  Pratt,  afterwards  Lord 
Camden,  to  which  George  Mason  refers,  is  doubtless  the  one 
given  by  him  sustaining  the  claims  made  in  1757,  by  the 
upper  House  of  the  Maryland  Assembly  to  the  appointment 
of  officers  and  the  supervision  of  the  acts  of  the  lower 

'  Mason  Papers. 

•  Hening's  **  Statutes,"  vol.  xiii. 

'  •*  Virginia  Calendar  Papers."  vol.  vi. 


346     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

House.  The  upper  House  was  the  Council  and  consisted  of 
the  appointees  and  creatures  of  the  proprietor,  Lord  Balti- 
more. The  opinion  of  the  English  lawyer  concluded  with 
these  words : 

''  The  Upper  House  should  take  care  how  they  admit  encroach- 
ments of  this  kind,  when  they  are  supported  by  arguments  drawn 
from  the  exercise  of  the  like  rights  in  the  Commons  here.  The 
constitutions  of  the  two  assemblies  differ  fundamentally  in  many 
respects.  Our  House  of  Commons  stands  upon  its  own  laws  ; 
whereas  Assemblies  in  the  colonies  are  regulated  by  their  respec- 
tive charters,  usages,  and  the  common  law  of  England,  and  will 
never  be  allowed  to  assume  those  which  the  House  of  Commons 
are  justly  entitled  to  here,  upon  principles  that  neither  can  nor 
must  be  applied  to  the  colonies.' 


»f  1 


Mr.  John  Hooe's  proposed  new  ferry  was  to  have  been 
across  the  Occoquan  River.  And  it  seems,  from  the  fact 
that  it  was  not  established,  that  George  Mason's  views  con- 
trolled the  action  of  the  Assembly.  It  was  in  this  year, 
1 791,  that  Colonel  Mason  wrote  his  last  political  paper.  It 
relates  to  the  division  into  Congressional  districts.  Virginia 
had  been  divided  into  ten  districts  by  the  act  of  1788.  Of 
these  George  Mason's  district  embraced  the  six  counties  of 
Prince  William,  Stafford,  Loudoun,  Fairfax,  King  George* 
and  Fauquier.  It  is  proposed,  writes  George  Mason,  at  the 
next  Assembly  to  lay  off  the  State  into  twenty-one  Con- 
gressional districts.  "  The  five  counties  of  Stafford,  Prince 
William,  Fairfax,  Loudoun,  and  Fauquier  (leaving  out  the 
county  of  King  George,  to  be  added  to  some  of  the  lower 
counties)  will  now  form  two  complete  districts,  and  it  will  be 
attempted  to  make  Fairfax  and  Loudoun  compose  one  of 
these  two  districts ;  and  Stafford,  Prince  William,  and  Fau- 
quier compose  the  other  district ;  by  which  means  the  sub- 
stance of  the  right  of  suffrage,  in  electing  members  of 
Congress  will  be  taken  from  the  people  of  Fairfax,  and  the 

'  Scharfs  **  History  of  Maryland,"  vol.  i.,  p.  503. 


VIRGINIA   CONGRESSIONAL  DISTRICTS.  347 

name  or  shadow  only  left  them/*  He  gives  his  reasons  for 
believing  that  such  a  result  will  follow,  and  in  a  footnote 
states  what  he  thinks  is  the  real  motive  of  the  "  nefarious 
project."  This  was  to  secure  the  election  of  Richard  Bland 
Lee,  a  Federalist.  Colonel  Mason's  suggestion  is  that  the 
three  small  counties,  Stafford,  Prince  William,  and  Fairfax, 
should  compose  one  district,  and  the  two  large  counties, 
Loudoun  and  Fauquier,  the  other,  as  in  the  districts  for  the 
election  of  State  senators,  and  in  this  way  the  small  county 
of  Fairfax  would  not  lose  its  voice  in  the  election,  as  would 
be  the  case  if  it  was  associated  with  a  single,  much  larger 
county.  In  the  following  year,  1792,  the  Assembly  in 
December,  two  months  after  George  Mason's  death,  passed 
an  act  forming  nineteen  Congressional  districts  instead  of 
the  twenty-one  anticipated.  And  the  principle  George 
Mason  contended  for  seems  to  have  been  in  some  measure 
regarded.  One  district  was  formed  of  the  large  county  of 
Loudoun  with  the  two  small  ones  of  Fairfax  and  Prince 
William,  while  another  district  comprised  the  large  county 
of  Fauquier  and  the  two  small  counties  of  Culpepper  and 
Stafford.'  George  Mason's  paper,  which  was  probably  writ- 
ten to  be  circulated  among  the  freeholders  of  his  county, 
and  to  be  used  by  its  representatives  in  the  Assembly,  is  full 
of  digni^,  and  is  a  clear  and  logical  presentation  of  his 
subject,  basing  its  argument  on  the  fundamental  principles 
of  free  government  which  its  author  had  so  often  expounded 
on  greater  occasions.  But  though  the  matter  was  not  one 
affecting  a  continent  or  a  commonwealth,  it  involved  a 
political  right  and  was  therefore  of  value  to  the  true  patriot 
and  statesman,  and  makes  a  not  unfitting  close  to  his  public 
labors." 

Colonel  Mason's  son  John  was  still  in  Virginia,  and  some 
notes  to  him  from  his  father  written  in  December,  1791, 
bring  to  a  conclusion  the  year's  personal  record  for  the 
subject  of  our  memoir. 

>  Hening's  "  SUtutes/'  vol.  xiiL 
*  Appendix  v. 


348      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

GUNSTON  Hall,  December  6,  1791. 

Dear  John  : 

Having  occasion  to  send  the  bearer,  negro  Charles,  to  Dr. 
Craiky  I  take  the  opportunity  by  him,  of  informing  you  that  I 
expect  my  overseers,  Green  and  Tugate,  or  one  of  them  will  go 
to  Alexandria  to-morrow  or  next  day,  in  my  little  boat.  I  will 
direct  them  to  apply  to  you,  and  you  can  let  me  know  by  them 
whether  you  have  sold  my  wheat,  &c.  I  have  also  to  desire  you 
will  buy  for  me  in  town,  upon  the  best  terms  you  can  for  cash, 
and  send  me  down  by  the  overseers,  in  my  boat,  the  articles  per 
list  on  the  other  side.  It  will  be  best  to  have  them  ready  for  the 
overseers  before  they  come  up,  that  the  boat  may  not  be  detained^ 
and  I  will  repay  you  the  money  for  them  when  you  return  to 
Gunston.  I  forgot  to  ask  you  whether  you  had  taken  out  for  me 
(as  I  desired)  from  the  Alexandria  inspectors,  the  notes  for  my 
little  Hunting  Creek  crop,  of  which  I  gave  you  a  memorandum. 
If  you  have  not  pray  take  them  out  now,  and  bring  them  to  me 
when  you  come  to  Gunston.  Notes  have  not  been  issued  for  any 
of  the  said  crop,  except  one  hogshead,  for  which  I  gave  Mitchell, 
the  overseer  an  order. 

Since  you  went  away  I  have  been  reflecting  upon  the  situation 
you  are  in  with  the  ships  you  are  now  loading,  and  that  if  you 
don't  get  the  tobacco  speedily  they  may  perhaps  be  stopped  by 
the  ice.  Rather  than  you  should  incur  this  risk,  I  will  ship  you, 
on  board  of  both,  or  either  of  your  ships  (besides  the  notes 
already  delivered  you),  sixty-five  hogsheads  of  tobacco,  which 
I  have  by  me,  four  of  which  are  in  Aquia,  two  at  the  Falls,  and 
all  the  rest  at  Chickamuxon,  Dumfries,  Colchester,  and  Alexan- 
dria. Lindsay  at  Colchester  owes  me  five  hogsheads  which  he 
has  told  me  were  ready  whenever  I  called  for  them.  If  they  are, 
and  I  will  send  to  him  to-day  to  know,  you  may  have  them  also, 
as  they  may  enable  you  to  leave  out  the  tobacco  at  Aquia  or  the 
Falls,  as  may  best  answer  your  purpose.  If  you  find  it  necessary 
to  take  the  tobacco  I  offer  it  will  be  proper  to  advise  me  of 
it  without  delay.  .  .  .  The  reason  I  did  not  incline  to  ship 
this  tobacco  when  I  gave  you  the  other  notes,  was  that  it  is  com- 
mon, ordinary,  light  tobacco,  and  I  was  dubious  of  the  quality 
answering  the  French  market,  now  that  the  emulation  among  the 
individual  manufacturers  will  occasion  a  demand  for  tobaccos  of 


TOBACCO  SHIPPED   TO  FRANCE.  349 

superior  qualities,  though  considering  the  present  low  price  and 
unpromising  prospects  here,  I  think  I  can  hardly  lose  by  shipping 
in  French  bottoms. 

I  am,  dear  John, 

Your  affectionate  father, 

G.  Mason. 


GuNSTON  Hall,  December  15,  1791. 
la  o'clock. 

Dear  John  : 

Your  brother  George  having  occasion  to  send  to  Alexandria,  I 
take  the  opportunity  of  writing  by  his  messenger,  and  wish  to  hear 
whether  most  of  your  long  expected  craft  has  arrived,  and  whether 
you  have  secured  tobacco  enough  for  both  of  your  ships,  &c. 
Thinking  you  would  be  glad  to  hear  how  your  craft  in  Occoquan 
is  going  on,  I  sent  this  morning  to  know.  Mr.  Bayley  writes  me 
that  the  craft  which  took  in  tobacco  from  Colchester  warehouse 
for  you,  a  few  days  ago,  got  out  of  Occoquan  yesterday,  and  he 
imagines  is  at  Alexandria  before  this  time  ;  and  that  another 
craft  of  yours,  I  presume  that  which  went  to  Chickamuxon  for 
my  tobacco  there,  is  now  at  the  wharf  at  Colchester  taking  in  23 
hhds.  of  my  tobaccos  and  5  hhds.  shipped  by  Mr.  Carter  of 
"  Nomini "  and  will  go  off  this  evening.  The  mercury  is  now  at 
40  degrees  in  Fahrenheit's  thermometer,  8  degrees  above  the 
freezing  point.  If  this  weather  holds  another  day  it  will  cer- 
tainly open  all  the  creeks.  Indeed  I  expect  the  creek  at  Dum- 
fries will  be  open  this  afternoon,  so  that  if  the  shippers  of  the 
craft  do  their  duty,  all  your  tobaccos  from  these  warehouses  will 
be  up  this  week.  About  Christmas,  or  two  or  three  days  before, 
the  winter's  frost  may  probably  set  in,  before  which  time  I  hope 
you  may  be  able  to  get  your  ships  loaded  and  down  the  river. 
After  you  have  made  your  arrangements,  with  respect  to  my 
tobacco  and  got  it  on  board  the  ships,  give  me  the  earliest  in- 
formation you  can,  that  I  may  have  my  letters,  &c.,  ready.  You 
know  it  is  my  custom  to  enclose  exact  lists  of  the  marked  numbers 
and  weights  [gross,  tare,  and  nett]  of  my  tobacco,  with  the  bills  of 
lading. 

Pray  tell  Mr.  Wilson  I  am  surprised  at  his  not  having  sent  a 
vessel  for  my  wheat,  being  very  anxious  to  have  it  taken  away 


3 so     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

before  the  frost  sets  in  ;  and  therefore  desire   the   opportunity 
this  fine  weather  affords  may  not  be  lost. 

I  am,  dear  John, 

Your  affectionate  father, 

G.  Mason. 
P.  S.    Please  get  me  a  good  closet  lock  and  send  it  by  the 
bearer — if  from  Mr.  Hodgson's  to  be  charged  to  my  account,  if 
from  any  other  store  you  will  please  to  pay  the  cash  for  it. 

John  Mason,  Esq  : 
Alexandria. 

X  GUNSTON  Hall,  December  23,  1791. 
Dear  John  : 

Enclosed  you  have  my  letters  for  Bordeaux  and  Marseilles, 
which  I  hope  will  be  in  time  for  the  ships.  Indeed  I  fear  last 
night's  hard  frost  has  blocked  them  up,  though  if  to-day  and  to- 
morrow turn  out  mild  weather,  the  river  will  open  again,  as  the 
ice  is  but  thin  yet.  .  .  .  And  you  will  give  the  proper  direc- 
tions about  your  brother  Thomas's  watch,  and  about  the  four 
pieces  of  coarse  grey  blankets  I  have  ordered  from  Bordeaux,  ij^ 

The  overseer  gave  me  a  little  bit  of  small  cordage  you  sent  down 
to  see  if  it  would  answer  for  leading  lines.  Leading  lines  should 
be  a  very  small  size  larger,  and  twisted  in  a  different  manner, 
viz.,  what  is  called  cable-laid  ;  they  should  also  be  made  of  the 
soundest,  strongest  hemp.  ...  I  have  ordered  the  bearer, 
Joe,  to  carry  up  a  portmanteau,  saddle  and  mail  pillion,  as  you 
desired,  and  hope  to  see  you  at  Gunston  on  Saturday. 

I  am,  dear  John, 

Your  affectionate  father, 

G.  Mason.'  ^n. 

This  last  letter,  written  two  days  before  Christmas,  shows 
us  that  John  Mason  was  expected  home  for  the  holidays. 
And  no  doubt  there  was  a  happy  family  party  assembled  on 
this  occasion.  Geoi^fe  Mason  from  "  Lexington,"  with  his 
wife  and  children,  were  near  enough  to  drive  over  to 
"Gunston"  at  any  time.  William  Mason  was  then  living 
with  his  father,  though  he  afterwards  removed  permanently 

'  Mason  Papers. 


^ 


ACCOUNT  OF  COLONEL  MASON'S  FAMILY.  3$ I 

to  "  Mattawoman,"  the  old  Eilbeck  place  in  Maryland. 
Thomson  Mason's  house,  "Hollin  Hall,"  on  an  estate  in 
Fairfax,  adjoining  that  of  "  Mount  Vernon,"  was  built  for 
him  by  his  father  about  this  time.  Thomas  Mason  lived  in 
Alexandria  in  these  years,  though  he  settled  later  at  "Wood- 
bridge,"  his  estate  in  Prince  William  County.  John  Mason, 
after  his  final  return  from  France,  made  his  home  on  Mason's 
Island,  near  Georgetown,  bequeathed  him  in  his  father's  will, 
and  there  called  Barbadoes.  Mrs.  McCarty  was  living  at 
'*  Cedar  Grove,"  in  the  neighborhood  of  **  Gunston  Hall." 
And  of  the  three  other  sisters,  two  of  them  were  located  in 
adjoining  counties  not  far  distant.  Mary,  Mrs.  Cooke,  lived 
at  "  West  Farm,"  in  Stafford  County,  and  Elizabeth,  Mrs. 
Thornton,  at  "  The  Cottage,"  in  King  George  County.  Ann, 
the  eldest  daughter  and  her  father's  house-keeper  during 
his  widowhood,  had  been  married  now  some  years,  and  her 
home  was  at  "Aquasco,"  in  Princfi  George  County,  Mary- 
land. These  brothers  and  sisters  were  an  affectionate  and 
united  family,  and  John  Mason  wrote  of  their  early  home- 
life  together  as  a  very  harmonious  and  happy  one.  And 
he  says : 

"  I  can  add  with  truth  as  I  do  with  infinite  pleasure,  and  as  a 
just  tribute  to  the  memories  of  my  brothers  and  sisters,  all  of 
whom  have  now  for  some  years  departed  this  life,  that  the  most 
sincere,  constant  affection  and  interchange  of  kindly  offices  sub- 
sisted afterwards  among  us  all.  And  that  there  never  was,  to  the 
best  of  my  knowledge,  a  single  quarrel  or  even  a  transient  cool- 
ness that  ever  took  place  between  any  of  us." ' 

The  affection  between  George  Mason  and  his  children  was 
very  close  and  tender,  as  the  letters  of  the  former  to  his  two 
sons  amply  testify.  As  the  daughters  were  all  settled  so 
near  him,  but  little  occasion  arose  for  correspondence  no 
doubt,  as  was  the  case  also  with  the  three  sons  who  did  not 
go  abroad. 

'  MS.  of  General  John  Mason. 


352     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

Early  in  January  John  Mason  left  **  Gunston  "  again  for  a 
trip  to  Philadelphia  and  New  York.  His  father  was  suffer- 
ing at  the  time  from  an  attack  of  the  gout,  as  we  learn  from 
this  letter  to  his  son  : 

Gunston  Hall,  January  23d,  1792. 
Dear  John  : 

I  received  your  letter  from  Baltimore  of  the  7th  inst.  and  am 
glad  to  hear  you  were  like  to  meet  with  no  disappointment  in  re- 
ceiving my  money  from  Messrs.  Smiths,  and  making  the  payment 
I  desired  to  Mr.  Dulany.  I  was  in  hopes  he  would  readily  have 
given  up  the  interest  during  the  war,  as  I  believe  every  British 
creditor  who  has  received  his  debt,  without  a  suit,  has  done  it ; 
and  the  Supreme  Courts  in  this  State,  and  I  believe  in  most,  if 
not  all  the  others,  have  constantly  deducted  it.  There  was,  I 
understand,  an  opinion  given  in  the  federal  court  in  Connecticut 
(though  I  believe  not  a  final  one)  that  interest  upon  British  debts 
was  recoverable,  which  I  suppose  is  what  Mr.  Dulany  alluded  to. 
I  wish  I  had  thought  to  have  desired  you,  just  to  make  the  ex- 
periment, whether  he  would  not  have  given  up  the  interest  during 
the  war,  by  telling  him  that  upon  those  terms  only,  the  money 
would  be  immediately  paid.  I  am  very  anxious  to  hear  the  last 
news  from  France.  I  presume  you  got  your  letters  by  the  ships, 
that  had  arrived  at  Baltimore  from  Bordeaux,  the  day  after  you 
wrote  to  me. 

I  am  also  anxious  to  hear  that  you  keep  your  health,  being 
apprehensive  that  this  extreme  cold  weather  (which  is  probably 
still  more  severe  to  the  Northward)  will  not  agree  with  your  con- 
stitution. The  snow  is  now  as  deep  here  as  it  was  in  the  hard 
winter  of  1740,  indeed  I  think  deeper  than  I  ever  saw  it,  except 
in  the  winter  of  1773.  It  will  occasion,  I  expect,  great  losses  in 
the  stocks  of  cattle  in  this  part  of  the  country,  badly  as  it  is 
provided  with  provender,  from  the  short  crops  of  corn  and 
hay. 

I  have  just  recovered  from  the  fit  of  the  gout  you  left  me  in, 
and  am  now  able  to  walk  about  the  house,  though  still  a  little 
lame.  In  every  other  respect,  thank  God,  I  am  in  good  health. 
It  has  proved,  however,  a  pretty  severe  fit,  though  a  regular  one 
and  remained  confined  to  one  of  my  feet. 


THE  POTOMAC  RIVER  BRIDGE.  353 

Present  me  to  my  friend  Col.  Monroe,  and  tell  him  I  should 
have  done  myself  the  honor  of  answering  his  letters  sooner,  had 
not  the  gout  forbid  me,  for  it  is  not  without  pain  that  I  am  yet 
able  to  sit  at  a  table  and  write. 

I  have  received  a  letter  from  Mr.  Stoddert  upon  the  subject 
of  the  projected  bridge,  in  which  he  gives  me  at  large  the 
same  reasons  he  did  you  to  persuade  me  that  its  effects  will  be 
favorable  to  a  town  on  my  land  on  this  side  the  river.  I  verily 
believe  he  is  of  that  opinion  himself,  for  I  know  him  a  man  of 
great  candor.  I  enclose  you  a  copy  of  my  answer  to  him,  by 
which  you  will  see  I  am  willing  to  compromise  with  the  gentle- 
men, upon  fair  and  reasonable  terms,  though  I  thought  it  best  at 
present  to  leave  the  matter  open,  to  see  if  they  are  inclined  to 
offer  me  such.  Besides  that  I  wish  to  act  liberally  on  the  occa- 
sion, I  have  some  particular  reasons  for  desiring  to  avoid  any 
dispute  with  them,  which  I  will  communicate  to  you  when  I  see 
you.  The  effects  of  the  bridge  as  well  as  the  practicability  of 
the  execution  are  very  doubtful,  and  I  am  at  some  loss  to  esti- 
mate what  will  be  a  just  and  reasonable  compensation.  I  would 
not  willingly  ask  more  nor  take  less.  What  do  you  think  of 
agreeing  to  take,  forever,  a  certain  part  (say  about  a  fifth)  of 
the  gross  tolls  or  money  received  annually  for  passengers  &c., 
without  my  having  any  concern  in  the  building,  repairs  or 
expences  of  the  bridge  ?  I  wish  you  would  endeavor  to  make 
yourself  acquainted  with,  and  inform  me,  of  the  tolls  or  rates 
taken  at  the  bridge  from  Boston  to  Charles  Town,  and  the 
annual  amount  of  the  money  received.  It  is  probable  Mr. 
Gerry,  or  some  of  the  Massachusetts  gentlemen  in  Congress, 
can  inform  you.  Or  if  you  will  write  to  Mr.  Gorham  he  can 
give  you  the  fullest  information  being,  if  I  recollect  right,  one 
of  the  proprietors  and  managers.  I  should  be  glad  also  to 
know  the  length  and  breadth  of  the  Boston  bridge,  the  width 
of  the  spaces  on  each  side  for  foot  passengers,  and  the  space 
in  the  middle  for  carriages.  Pray  let  me  hear  from  you  as 
often  as  you  conveniently  can.  Tell  me  how  you  have  your 
health,  whether  you  have  determined  to  go  any  further  east- 
ward than  New  York,  and  when  we  may  expect  to  see  you 
again  at  Gunston.  Your  brother  George  and  his  family  are 
well :  he  keeps  his  health  this  winter  better  than  could  have 

«3 


354     ^^^  ^^^  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 


been  expected,  for  I  dreaded  the  effect  of  this  severe  weather 

upon  him. 

I  am,  dear  John, 

Your  affectionate  father, 

G.  Mason. 
per  post 

Mr.  John  Mason, 

Philadelphia. 

If  Mr.  Mason  should  have  left  Philadelphia,  recommended  to 

the  care  of  Mr.  Joseph  Anthony  to  forward  to  him.* 

In  May  Colonel  Mason  wrote  the  following  letter  of 
business  to  John  Francis  Mercer: 

GuNSTON  Hall,  May  12th,  1792. 

Dear  Sir  : 

I  yesterday  received  a  letter  (forwarded  by  Mr.  Johnson)  from 
you,  dated  the  23rd  October,  179 1,  covering  an  old  letter  from 
Mr.  Rutland  to  you,  respecting  some  land  he  said  he  had  upon 
James  river.  Had  this  letter  come  to  my  hands  in  Rutland's  life- 
time it  might  have  enabled  me  to  have  examined  into  the  title, 
situation  and  value  of  the  land,  and  perhaps,  by  it,  to  have 
secured  part  of  my  debt ;  at  present  I  do  not  know  that  it 
will  be  of  any  use  to  me. 

I  wrote  to  you  last  fall,  respecting  two  bonds  from  the  late  Mr. 
George  Frazer  Hawkins,  to  me  which  I  had  formerly  put  into 
your  hands,  and  enclose  you  a  memorandum  of  the  dates  and 
amounts  of  them  ;  but  I  have  not  been  favored  with  any  answer 
from  you  upon  the  subject,  and  Mr.  Johnson  tells  me  you  do  not 
recollect  having  had  them.  If  I  now  had  the  bonds  I  could  find 
means  of  obtaining  the  debt,  and  must  entreat  you  to  search  for 
them.  I  remember,  at  the  time  I  gave  them  to  you  (in  my  own 
house)  seeing  you  put  them  into  a  pocket  book  you  then  had  with 
you.  They  must  certainly  be  somewhere  among  your  papers, 
and  if  carefully  searched  for,  I  have  no  doubt  may  be  found. 
In  case  you  cannot  find  them,  I  have  to  request  that  you  will 
advise  me  what  manner  I  shall  proceed  to  ascertain  and  recover 
the  debts  ;  for  the  sum  is  too  large  for  me  to  lose,  if  the  loss  can 

»  MS.  Letter. 


LAWSUITS  IN  MARYLAND.  355 

be  avoided.  The  said  bonds  are  regularly  entered  and  charged 
in  my  ledger.  I  can  prove  by  Col.  Lyles  (who  transacted  the 
business  with  Mr.  Hawkins  for  me)  that  he  took  two  such  bonds 
from  Mr.  Hawkins,  on  my  behalf,  though  perhaps  he  may  not 
recollect  the  precise  dates,  or  respective  amounts.  These  bonds 
were  both  put  in  suit  in  Prince  George's  county  court  against 
Mr.  Hawkins,  and  the  suits  abated  by  his  death  ;  and  it  appears 
from  the  records  of  that  court,  that  the  two  actions  of  debt, 
George  Mason  vs.  George  Frazer  Hawkins,  respectively  corre- 
spond exactly  with  the  bonds  charged  in  my  ledger  ;  that  is,  the 
said  suits  are  exactly  par  double  the  sum  (as  the  penalty)  of  each 
of  the  bonds  charged  in  my  ledger.  Upon  the  abatement  of  the 
suits,  on  Mr.  Hawkins's  death,  I  withdrew  the  bonds  from  the 
clerk's  office  of  Prince  George's  county,  and  after  having  kept 
them  some  time  by  me,  gave  them  to  you,  that  you  might  join  my 
claim  to  those  of  some  of  the  other  creditors,  who  I  understood 
had  filed  a  bill  in  chancery,  in  order  to  subject  Mr.  Hawkins's 
lands  to  the  payment  of  his  bond-debts,  during  the  minority  of 
his  devisees.  Perhaps  you  may  have  lodged  them  in  the  chan- 
cery office  for  this  purpose.  I  have  cause  to  believe  there  are,  or 
soon  will  be  assets  in  the  hands  of  his  executors,  or  rather  in  the 
hands  of  his  administrators,  de  bonis  non.  I  beg  you  will  let  me 
hear  from  you  upon  this  subject,  as  soon  as  you  have  had  time  to 
make  the  proper  inquiries. 

I  am  altogether  unacquainted  with  the  present  state  of  my  suit 
with  Mr.  David  Ross.  I  have  wrote  to  Mr.  Luther  Martin  once 
or  twice  lately  about  it,  but  can  get  no  answer  from  him,  and 
have  reason  to  believe  it  has  been  very  much  neglected  by  him. 
When  I  conversed  with  you  about  it  last,  you  were  of  opinion 
that  it  would  not  be  proper  (Mr.  Ross's  father  having  obtained  a 
patent  for  the  land)  to  venture  a  trial  at  common  law,  upon  the 
ejectment,  until  we  had  either  obtained  a  patent  from  the  land 
office,  upon  Mr.  Bladen's  certificate  of  survey,  of  many  years' 
older  date  than  Mr.  Ross's  patent,  survey,  or  warrant,  assigned  to 
me  by  Mr.  Benjamin  Tasker,  Mr.  Bladen's  attorney  in  fact,  a 
patent  ordered  to  be  issued  thereon  to  me,  and  the  patent  to  me 
actually  drawn,  but  before  the  governor  had  affixed  the  seal,  and 
stopped  by  a  caveat  from  Mr.  Ross's  father,  and  the  caveat  never 
tried.     Or  else  that  we  should  by  a  bill  in  chancery,  endeavor 


356     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

either  to  vacate  Mr.  Ross's  patent,  or  compel  him  to  convey  to 
me  so  much  thereof  as  is  included  in  Mr.  Bladen's  certificate  of 
survey  for  the  tract  called  the  "  Pleasant  Valley."  The  papers 
and  statement  in  yours  and  Mr.  Martin's  hands,  give  all  the  in- 
formation I  am  able  to  furnish,  and  I  hope  you  will  now  be  able 
to  attend  to  it,  for  I  am  extremely  anxious  to  have  the  matter 
fairly  and  speedily  tried,  upon  its  real  merits,  so  that  the  title 
may  be  clearly  and  finally  settled,  and  enable  me,  if  settled  in  my 
favor,  to  sell  the  land,  in  order  to  close  the  Ohio  Company's 
affairs  as  speedily  as  possible. 

I  am,  with  great  regard,  dear  Sir, 

Your  most  obedient  servant, 

G.  Mason. 
John  F.  Mercer,  Esq., 

Annapolis.' 

Colonel  Mason  seems  to  have  suffered  some  annoyances 
with  his  Maryland  lawyers.  First  Mr.  Thomas  Stone,  as  he 
thinks,  is  a  little  careless  of  his  Virginia  client's  interests, 
then  Luther  Martin,  his  Convention  friend,  proves  forgetful 
and  will  not  answer  his  letters,  and  lastly  his  relative,  Mr. 
Mercer,  cannot  find  some  bonds  that  had  been  put  in  his 
hands  while  on  a  visit  at  "  Gunston  Hall."  Doubtless 
George  Mason,  with  his  orderly  habits  and  prompt  methods, 
could  not  always  make  allowances  for  the  busy  advocates 
who  were  managing  his  affairs.  Subsequent  letters  from 
George  Mason  of  "  Lexington,"  written  after  his  father's 
death  to  John  F.  Mercer,  show  him  winding  up  the  Ohio 
Company's  concerns  as  Colonel  Mason's  executor.  The 
latter  had  left  a  statement  in  his  own  handwriting  of  the 
Ohio  Company's  funds.  The  dividend  when  collected 
would  amount  to  ;^I02  \2s.  9^/.  James  and  John  Francis 
Mercer,  as  members  of  the  Company,  were  to  receive  their 
share. 

'  The  last  letters  of  George  Mason  that  are  known  to  be 
extant  were  written  to  his  son  John  in  May  and  August, 
1792: 

•  MS.  Letter. 


LAST  LETTERS   TO  HIS  SON.  357 

GuNSTON  Hall,  May  32,  1792. 
Dear  John  :  V 

Your  man  Lewis  arrived  here  this  morning  with  letters  from 
you  and  your  brother  Tom. 

I  am  glad  to  hear  my  tobacco  on  board  the  Auguste^  Capt.  Ca- 
bella,  is  insured,  and  thank  you  for  the  directions  you  have  given 
Messrs.  Cathalan's  respecting  it.  I  have  never  heard  in  what 
manner  this  vessel  was  lost,  or  whether  her  crew  or  any  part  of 
the  cargo  was  saved  ;  nor  have  I  yet  heard  anything  of  the  French 
brig  you  loaded  at  Alexandria  for  Bordeaux,  on  board  which  I 
had  fifty  hogsheads  of  tobacco.  As  I  understand  some  very  good 
accounts  of  sales  for  good  Virginia  tobacco  have  lately  been  re- 
ceived from  London,  I  think  it  probable  you  may  be  able  to  resell, 
to  advantage,  the  tobacco  you  have  purchased  if  you  should  find 
it  necessary. 

The  prodigious  fall  of  exchange  between  France  and  foreign 
countries,  and  the  great  and  continuing  depreciation  of  their 
assignats,  are  truly  alarming  circumstances,  such  as  I  very  much 
fear  will  be  productive  of  general  dissatisfaction  and  confusion, 
and  render  it  extremely  difficult  if  not  impracticable,  to  keep  up 
an  army  and  support  an  expensive  war.  This  summer  must,  I 
presume,  bring  things  to  a  crisis,  and  show  the  nation  with 
certainty,  what  they  are  to  expect  from  the  great  powers  of 
Europe.  Prussia,  I  have  no  doubt,  would  be  ready  enough  to 
guaranty  the  Low  Countries  to  the  Emperor,  but  I  think  the  Eng- 
lish government  will  hardly  hazard  so  unpopular  a  measure, 
y  As  I  shall  forward  this  letter  by  the  first  post,  I  am  in  hopes  it 
will  find  you  in  Norfolk,  and  shall  therefore  trouble  you  with  the 
execution  of  a  piece  of  business  there,  which  though  at  first 
a  trifle,  is  by  the  unexpected  delay  I  have  met  with  in  it,  now 
become  an  object  of  considerable  importance  to  me.  I  wanted  a 
few,  a  hundred  feet  of  c)rpress  scantling  for  the  columns,  rails, 
ballusters  &c  of  the  piazzas  and  steps  to  your  brother  Thomson's 
house.  None  of  this  scantling  being  large,  it  might,  I  dare  say  at 
any  time  have  been  procured  in  a  fortnight,  if  attention  had  been 
paid  to  it.  )^  About  this  time  twelvemonth  or  sooner,  I  wrote 
to  Mr.  John  Brent  and  enclosed  him  an  exact  bill  of  this  scant- 
ling and  at  the  same  time  a  memorandum  of  a  large  quantity  of 
shingles  I  wanted,  and  desiring  to  know  if  they  could  be  got  at 


358      LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

Norfolk  so  as  to  be  landed  here  in  the  course  of  last  sum- 
mer or  fall.  I  limited  the  price  of  the  shingles,  but  as  the  quan- 
tity of  cypress  scantling  was  small  I  limited  no  price  to  that,  but 
desired  Mr.  Brent  to  have  it  got  as  soon  as  he  could,  and  sent  up 
by  the  first  vessel  to  Potomac  river,  to  be  landed  about  five 
or  six  miles  below  Alexandria,  just  at  the  upper  end  of  General 
Washington's  estate,  and  a  very  little  below  the  large  Pocorson, 
that  runs  from  the  mouth  of  Great  Hunting  Creek  two  or  three 
miles  down  the  river.  Mr.  Brent  wrote  me  that  the  shingles 
could  not  be  procured  at  the  price  I  had  limited,  but  that  I 
might  depend  upon  the  scantling's  being  immediately  got  and 
sent  up  by  the  first  vessel,  at  all  events  in  the  course  of  the  sum- 
mer (viz.  :  last  summer).  It  not  coming  I  have  wrote  repeatedly 
to  Mr.  Brent,  twice  this  spring  per  post,  but  have  had  no  answer. 
The  captain  of  the  packet  from  Alexandria  to  Norfolk  was 
desired  to  speak  to  Mr.  Brent  about  it.  Mr.  Brent  told  him 
the  scantling  was  got,  but  had  not  been  brought  to  Norfolk 
but  that  it  should  be  at  Norfolk,  ready  for  the  packet  when  she 
came  down  the  next  trip.  The  next  trip  the  same  excuse  was 
made  and  the  same  promise  repeated.  In  short  I  find  Mr.  Brent 
so  careless  and  inattentive  a  man  that  no  dependence  or  con- 
fidence can  be  placed  in  him.  When  the  packet  was  at  Alexan- 
dria some  time  ago  your  brother  Thomson  gave  the  captain  a  bill 
of  this  scantling,  and  desired  the  captain  if  when  he  went  next  to 
Norfolk  Mr.  Brent  had  not  the  scantling  then  ready  for  him  to 
depend  no  longer  upon  him,  but  to  have  the  scantling  got  and 
brought  to  Norfolk  himself  and  bring  it  up  with  him.  The 
packet  went  from  Alexandria  a  few  days  ago,  and  is  now,  I  sup- 
pose, at  Norfolk,  where  perhaps  she  may  continue  some  time.  I 
have  lately  got  all  the  shmgles,  which  with  all  the  weather  board- 
ing are  ready  to  put  up.lNThe  house  will  be  raised  next  week,  and 
I  am  in  danger  of  having  the  building  stopped,  and  half  a  dozen 
workmen  upon  my  hands,  doing  nothing,  for  want  of  this  small 
quantity  of  cypress  scantling,  without  which  the  piazzas  can't  be 
raised^What  I  have  therefore  to  beg  of  you  is  to  inquire  imme- 
diately oif  Mr.  Brent  and  the  captain  of  the  packet,  and  if  neither 
of  them  have  already  had  the  scantling  got  that  you  will  endeavor 
to  have  it  got  with  all  possible  expedition,  and  sent  up  by  the 
packet  now  there,  or  if  this  can't  be  done,  by  the  packet  the  next 


THOMSON  MASON  OF  "  HOLUN  HALL."  359 

trip,  or  by  any  other  vessel  which  may  happen  to  be  coming 
to  Alexandria  soon. 

y^  Your  affectionate  father, 

G.  Mason,  y' 

\  GuNSTON  Hall,  August  aoth,  179a. 
Dear  John, 

About  four  or  five  years  ago  Mr.  Henderson  imported  from 
Scotland,  upon  annual  wages,  two  stonemasons,  James  Reid  and 
Alexander  Watson,  very  good  workmen.  Since  the  expiration  of 
their  contract  with  Mr.  Henderson  they  have  been  working  in 
Dumfries  and  about  that  part  of  the  country,  and  last  year  made 
some  free  stone  chimney-pieces  for  Col.  Cooke  which  I  think 
are  well  done  and  upon  reasonable  terms,  to  the  best  of  my  recol- 
lection, a  guinea  each.  Being  desirous  to  get  these  men  to  make 
four  free  stone  chimney-pieces  for  your  brother  Thomson's  house, 
I  sent  down  to  Dumfries  three  or  four  days  ago  to  get  one  of 
them  to  come  up  to  take  the  dimensions  of  your  brother  Thorn* 
son's  chimneys  that  they  might  immediately  get  the  chimney- 
pieces,  but  was  informed  they  are  both  at  work  at  George  Town, 
I  suppose  about  the  new  bridge  building  over  Rock  Creek.  I 
must  therefore  beg  you  will  inquire  them  out,  and  see  if  you  can 
get  them  to  do  your  brother's  chimney-pieces,  as  soon  as  the  Rock 
Creek  bridge  is  finished,  which  I  am  told  will  be  by  the  last  of 
this  month,  and  that,  in  the  meantime,  the  sooner  the  better,  you 
will  endeavor  to  get  one  of  them  to  ride  down  to  your  brother 
Thomson's  to  take  the  dimensions  of  the  four  chimneys,  for  which 
he  wants  free  stone  chimney-pieces,  and  also  of  the  fire  place  in 
his  best  room,  and  give  directions  for  a  marble  chimney-piece  to 
be  sent  for  to  England,  unless  one  of  those  you  have  to  dispose  of 
will  suit  it,  or  can  be  made  by  them  to  do  so,  which  you  will  know 
by  getting  the  man  to  examine  them  after  he  returns  from  your 
brother's.  If  you  can  get  one  of  these  men  to  go  down  to  your 
brother  Thomson's  you  will  be  kind  enough  to  let  your  man 
Lewis  go  down  with  him  to  show  him  the  way,  and  you  will  hire 
a  horse  upon  my  account  for  the  man  to  ride.  I  purpose  that 
these  men  shall  get  the  stone  themselves  for  Thomson's  chimney- 
pieces  and  hearth  stones,  either  at  Aquia  or  at  the  quarry  near 
Dumfries,  whichever  they  think  the  best  stone,  and  I  will  carry 
them  from  thence  to  your  brother  Thomson'sJf 


360     LIFE  AND  CORRESPONDENCE  OF  GEORGE  MASON. 

This  letter  will  be  delivered  you  by  our  cousin,  young  George 
Mason  of  Pohick,  by  whom  you  will  let  me  know  whether  you 
can  get  these  men  to  do  the  chimney-pieces  ;  and  also  how  com- 
mon tobacco  in  George  Town  warehouse  sells  at  present,  and  if 
likely  to  rise  ? 

I  see  in  a  late  Alexandria  newspaper  notice  of  an  intended 
application  to  the  Virginia  Assembly  at  the  next  session  for  their 
projected  bridge  over  Potomac  River,  opposite,  or  nearly  opposite 
to  George  Town,  and  for  a  condemnation  of  land  to  join  the 
Southern  abutment  to,  and  for  a  road,  if  necessary.  You  should 
take  care  to  be  fully  prepared  in  time  with  a  true  plan  and  repre- 
sentation of  the  situation  of  the  place  as  connected  both  with 
George  Town  and  the  federal  city,  the  comparative  width  of  a  bridge 
in  each  of  the  places  (that  proposed  by  them  above  and  that  to  and 
from  the  Island)  ;  the  true  depth  of  water  in  both  places  should 
be  ascertained,  in  which  I  would  not  have  you  trust  to  any  repre- 
sentation of  theirs,  and  everything  so  done  as  to  be  authenticated 
by  affidavits :  the  new  bridge  over  the  mouth  of  Rock  Creek 
should  also  be  laid  down.  And  I  think  it  would  be  of  great  im- 
portance if  by  writing  to  Mr.  L'Enfant  you  could  procure  his 
opinion,  with  his  reasons,  in  favor  of  a  bridge  at  the  Island,  not 
letting  the  George  Town  people  know  that  you  make  any  such 
application. 

I  am  something  better  than  when  you  left  me  ;  my  fevers  have 

left  me,  but  I  am  still  very  weak  and  low. 

I  am,  dear  John, 

Your  very  affectionate  father, 

G.  Mason. 
John  Mason,  Esq  : 

George  Town,  Maryland. 

By  favor  of  Mr.  George  Mason,  Junr.,  of  Pohick.* 

What  were  George  Mason's  sentiments  regarding  the  gen- 
eral government  which  he  had  seen  inaugurated  with  so 
many  misgivings?  We  have  caught  a  glimpse  of  them 
through  Jefferson's  letter  of  February,  1791,  and  from  the 
same  source,  in  connection  with  a  significant  phrase  in  one 
of  Washington's  letters,  George  Mason's  views  may  be  very 

'  Mason  Papers. 


GEORGE  MASON'S  POLITICAL  SENTIMENTS.        361 

clearly  determined.  Jefferson  wrote  to  Washington  on  the 
23d  of  May,  1792,  urging  him  to  come  forward  for  a  second 
presidential  term,  and  giving  him  a  remarkably  candid 
review  of  the  objections  that  had  been  made  to  the  admin- 
istration of  the  government.  These  objections  Washington 
repeats  in  a  confidential  letter  to  Alexander  Hamilton, 
classifying  them  under  twenty-one  several  specifications.' 
Washington  writes  Hamilton  on  the  29th  of  July,  from 
'*  Mount  Vernon,"  and  says  that  on  his  way  home  and  since 
his  arrival  he  had  sought  to  learn  ''  the  sentiments  which 
are  entertained  of  public  measures.**  He  finds  that  even 
the  moderate  men,  friends  of  the  government,  are  alarmed 
"  at  that  system  of  policy  and  those  interpretations,*'  and  he 
adds :  "  Others  less  friendly,  perhaps,  to  the  government, 
and  more  disposed  to  arraign  the  conduct  of  its  ofKcers 
(among  whom  may  be  classed  my  neighbor  and  quondam 
friend  Col.  M.),  go  further,  and  enumerate  a  variety  of 
matters,  which,  as  well  as  I  recollect,  may  be  adduced  under 
the  following  heads.**  The  "  variety  of  matters  "  as  given 
by  Washington,  in  Jefferson*s  words,  are  evidently  to  be 
traced  through  the  latter  to  George  Mason.  This  is  the  last 
time  that  Washington  mentions  his  old  friend,  in  his  corre- 
spondence, and  it  does  not  seem  likely  there  was  much 
intercourse  just  then  between  "  Gunston  Hall  '*  and  "  Mount 
Vernon."  There  is  nothing,  however,  in  George  Mason's 
letters  to  show  any  diminution  of  the  friendship  between 
himself  and  Washington,  though  it  is  evident  from  what  he 
writes  to  his  son  in  March,  1789,  that  he  feared  some  such 
alienation  would  arise.  The  objections,  then,  of  George 
Mason,  Jefferson,  and  others,  to  the  measures  of  the  federal 
government,  related  in  the  first